Happy Together (A Borderlands 3 Novelization)
by M Knightium
Summary: (Warning: Heavy Spoilers for Borderlands 3) More or less, this is a rough "novelization" of Borderlands 3; an adaptation of the story, if you will, but with creative liberties taken to either keep things fun, or keep things interesting. And yes, the title is a reference to the trippy trailer they released...that trailer was dope.
1. The New Kids on the Block

Cletus was in a good mood.

Ever since he joined that cult, the COV or whatever they were called, his luck on Pandora turned right around! He went from having to fight skags for scraps of food to eating like a cannibalistic tink after a battle!

…cruel idea, but…not inaccurate.

Kicking over another dead Crimson Raider soldier, the bandit tilted his head as he eyed the dead man. The God Queen, Tyreen, said for him and the others to attack the meeting place for the Crimson Raiders and sack it; he thought they'd be a lot harder to kill, but he was surprised, to say the least.

Hey, it at least meant easy looting, right?

His attention was drawn when he heard the doors part. Looking over, Cletus paled when he saw just who arrived.

Four people; a guy, two girls, and a robot clearly. For a moment, Cletus thought they were just WEIRD bandits or offworlders…but something about them felt…off. He couldn't put his finger on it—

_**CRASH**_

He cringed when a fucking skag smashed through the window, grabbing a tink on the bar counter and shaking him around like a damn chew toy! All at once, the room exploded into chaos, each of the newcomers fighting in new and chaotic ways that told Cletus, at last, why they felt so off.

They were fucking Vault Hunters! The sort of guys who ate bandits like him for breakfast! Sometimes, quite literally, in the case of a psycho gone Vault Hunting a while back.

Cletus ducked down behind the bar and covered his head, the bandit huffing and buffing as he watched a window get smashed out, the bandit using the opportunity presented and jumping out. He could see the shooting and mayhem transition outside, and he knew he had to get away, especially when the four Vault Hunters utterly obliterated the reinforcement vehicles.

He took off running and—

_**BAM**_

Cletus couldn't feel anything, but he was vaguely aware that he was on his back…and that he got hit by a bus. A bus that, amidst all the chaos, went unnoticed.

…it was a shitty way to die, but at least it beat being ripped apart by the Vault Hunters.

* * *

Zane adjusted himself on the bus seat, resting his hands on his thighs as he looked to the three other guys he met up with to find this…Firehawk? Lilith? He didn't really remember her name. Didn't seem important. What _was_ important was the three other Vault Hunters he found were…well, for lack of a better word, weird as shite.

But, he learned pretty well in his travels that weird didn't mean bad…unless they were trying to kill him. Then weird meant bad.

"So," He rested his arm on the back of the seat and leaned over to look at the others. "You folks answerin' that weird flyer too? Or did I get on the wrong bus? Granted, it was the only bus, but…y'know, Pandora."

"I do not believe you are in the wrong spot, no," The robot spoke, Zane just now realizing he had a skag with him, the bot steady patting the creature as it nuzzled against his hand affectionately. "We all answered the call, for our own reasons."

"Uh-huh. Mind tellin' me why ya got a damn skag, though? Ain' they like…fuckin' shite to take care of?"

"Mr. Chew requires little maintenance. Nor do the others, Broodless and Meat-Thief."

"…others?" Zane just now realized a jabber was swinging about and a spiderant was curled up on one of the back seats. Seemed the robot was a regular pet hoarder, then…he'd have to be careful with him.

"Huh…alright, and what 'bout you fine ladies? Ya in the right spot too?"

"I am, yes." The muscular girl spoke up, casually leaning back in her seat, watching the scenery roll by. "I came to Pandora for new fights, and it seems like they'll save me the trouble and find me first." She was a fighter, then; Zane made a mental note to bring her to one of his favorite bars. See what sort of trouble she could stir while he got a pint.

"Well, that's neat. Ya got a name?"

"Amara, the Tiger of Partali, and you?"

"Zane Flynt. Don' ask 'bout my last name. Family was weird."

"I see. And aren't you a little old to be out here, Zane?" He could sense some tease to her voice, evident by the smirk Amara had. Zane just chuckled in response.

"Never too old to have some fun and shoot some guys in the face, if ya ask me."

"Agreed." He liked this one. "And what 'bout you, short stuff, you got a name?"

"Moze. Call me short again and I'll rip that shitty beard right the fuck off." He knew it was a threat, and he knew there was a good chance she'd actually do it, but Zane couldn't help but to break out into laughter as a result.

"HA! I've been threatened much worse in me travels, Moze, but fine. I won' call ya short…least not to your face." She grumbled and turned back in her seat. Zane chuckled again and turned his attention over to the robot. "And you?"

"I am FL4K. The greatest hunter in the galaxy."

"Oh, a hunter? Whaddya hunting? Animals? People? Animals AND people?"

"Whatever suits my needs for the time, and what will make worthy prey." Least he wasn't an assassin…was it weird to call the robot a he also? Zane didn't dwell on it for very long. Namely because he heard…something in his head. A voice, really, that clearly wasn't his own cause it wasn't saturated in Irish gold.

"Oooooookay, anyone else hear a voice in their heads? Cause I did, and I'm thinkin' the pint I had earlier might've been spiked."

"It's not just you, old man," Moze grunted. "All of us…I'm guessing that was Lilith, the siren we're off to see."

"On the topic of sirens," FL4K spoke up, leaning out from his seat. "Amara, was it, you are one also, are you not?"

"Hmph, what gave it away?"

"You do little to hide your tattoos. I was informed through my hunts that sirens are an exceptionally rare prey."

"We are, and you're wrong about the prey part. If anything," She cracked her knuckles, grinning as she looked back to the robot. "WE are the hunters, and everyone else in the galaxy's our prey."

Zane took it back. He definitely liked this one.

He felt the bus come to a stop, the Operative hopping up and heading for the doors, making sure he had his handgun with him and being the first one off.

This led to him coming face to face with a CL4P-TP unit. He regretted being the first one off.

"Greetings, Vault Hunters! You're all here to join with my glorious army, right?"

For once in his life, Zane was tempted to just shoot someone in the face and be done with things.

* * *

Moze looked over the ECHO device she was given, checking out all its features and what it could do. Truthfully, she never got her hands on one until now, mainly because her time was…usually very slim. Working for Vladof did that.

Clearing the small jump and walking behind the others, the former soldier looked away from the ECHO's screens to see a…well, a weird base up ahead. One that bore a banner saying 'Children of the Vault'…most likely, they were related to those fucks they smashed earlier.

"Moze," She looked up and flinched when she saw it was the robot who called her name, FL4K pointing their hand towards a rock that, seconds later, violently exploded.

"…okay what?"

"The annoying robot said he had an weapons cache there for us. We need to retake this base, and that is how."

"Ah, gotcha." She placed the ECHO on her hip and stepped over, seeing the asshole old guy and the siren already inspecting their firearms, Moze frowning when all she found in the opened chest were pistols.

"…really? Just weedy little pistols? You couldn't smuggle anything, I dunno, fucking useful?"

"Well excuuuuuuuuse me," The Claptrap unit beeped. "I did the best I could. And what was easy. And cheap."

"Fear not, Moze," FL4K reached down to pick the remaining two handguns up and offer her one. "In the right hands, even a weapon such as this can dispatch many foes."

"Yeah," She accepted the handgun, rolling her eyes. "But it'd be done faster with an assault rifle."

"Quiet, recruits! I must antagonize the bandits!" Moze restrained her urge to curse the robot out. Namely because he had rolled up to the metal door, shouting and calling to get the attention of the bandits inside. Moze could already count seven holes in that plan, but she didn't care enough to mention it.

"Is he certain that's a good idea?" Amara asked. "I'm one for a fight, yes, but this is just leaving yourself open to get shot in the face."

"Let him do it." Zane shrugged. "If it works, we do our thing. If it fails, he gets shot in the…wanna say face, and I laugh. So far, it's probably gonna be the latter." The doors suddenly dented inwards and Claptrap went flying, being stuck to a magnet that was rapidly receding upwards.

"HEEEEEEEEEELP! RECCCCCCCCRRRUIIIITS!"

"…see, now it's just annoyin' again." For once, Moze had to agree with Zane. FL4K was already in action, pressing himself behind cover as they open fired at the bandits within, pets hanging back with him.

"Ugh, let's just…get this over with." Moze didn't hesitate to call up Iron Bear, jumping up as the mech digistructed itself around her, the Gunner's hands gripping the controls as she piloted the mech into the base, open firing at the bandits as she heard bullets ping off Iron Bear's hull.

Least they were dumb. Small-arms did jack shit to her mech.

Mowing down the bandits, Moze released the gun controls for her mech as she saw the area was, for the most part, cleared, the Gunner pushing up from her seat as Iron Bear digistructed away once again.

"We must push up," FL4K said, reloading their firearm and motioning towards the magnet. "And find a way to free the Claptrap before more bandits arrive."

"I mean…do we have to, though?" Zane scratched his head. "He seems fine up there…probably. I guess." Moze ignored the robot's screaming. Once again, she found herself agreeing with Zane…she hated that, a little.

Besides, he'd be fine. Unless that magnet turned off. Then it'd be a hard fall.

* * *

Amara stood over the bandit who called himself Shiv, rolling her neck and shaking her head. He was supposed to be tough shit; the head honcho of the place. She was disappointed he fell so fast, and left her itching for more.

"WHOOAAAAAA—ow." Thankfully, and unthankfully, FL4K got the robot down. She couldn't get a read on the Beastmaster, as they put it, but she found them okay.

Turning to step outside, she watched the robot roll to his wheel, and for distant shouts to catch her ears, her shield's flickering from a stray shot as, to her delight, more bandits poured into the area. Good. Now she had her fight.

The others stayed back to shoot as she sprinted forward, throwing her fist at a psycho and sending him to the ground with a brutal haymaker, ignoring her gun as she used her fists to beat down the intruders, a happy grin on her face as she relentlessly pummeled the bandits. THIS was what she came for, and she couldn't be happier! Sure, they were just feeble COV morons, but they'd sate her urge for a fight until they fought something…better.

And then the COV invaders were retreating. That wouldn't do.

"Hey! Get back here and fight me—" Something slammed down atop them, quite literally incinerating the remaining bandits. "…okay, here's a new fight—"

"Wait, stand down, Amara." FL4K stepped forward, turning their single eye to her before they turned to the dying flames. "She is here."

"Right you are." The flames died down and Lilith stood there, arms crossed. So, she was the other siren…she was impressive. "Hmm, more Vault Hunters. I thought we'd only get one of you, but I'm glad there's four of you."

"Yeah, we're a bit…weird, to say the least," Amara turned over to Moze who was disembarking from her Iron Bear mech, the siren silently wondering where she even stored such a thing whenever it was sent away. "Aren't there supposed to be more Crimson Raiders? Like, we can't be the only ones." Lilith frowned.

"Unfortunately, what you see here is what we have. The COV's been relentless in killing Crimson Raiders and anyone else who refuses to join their demented cult. For them, it's either join, or get wasted."

"And I take it it ain' the fun kinda wasted, either." Zane tacked on, the old man reloading his firearm and twirling it on his finger. "Either way, seems like they need their shite kicked in, and we're the lot to do it."

"It's…not that easy. The Calypsos keep them pretty hyped up, to the point where they have thousands of recruits daily, all for the purpose of 'pleasing their god queen'."

"And I take it we will meet this god queen soon enough?"

"If things go the way they're going. Until then, we'll have to make this the rally point for any Crimson Raiders still out here…so…you four can stick here until I get a lay of the area. So…don't break anything." And as quickly as Lilith arrived, she was gone, quite literally teleporting away in a spray of fire that left Amara whistling lowly.

She wished she'd get powers like that! One day. Perhaps later on.

…maybe with some Eridium…

* * *

FL4K was amused. The hunt was done, and they were victorious. Granted, the three others survived, but…well setbacks had to be made. The Beastmaster offered another cut of meat from one of the dead bandits, currently seated in a chair as the other Vault Hunters sat and chatted at a table, enjoying their downtime in a calmer, less hectic setting. FL4K's eye narrowed when Meat-Thief didn't hesitate to snatch it from their hand, the jabber living up to his title as the monkey scampered over to one of the nearby tables, wolfing down the meat and whooping loudly. The sun was beginning to set and there was still no sign of the Firehawk, but FL4K was fine with this. The beasts needed to be fed, and this gave valued time to do so.

"Oi, tinman, that jabber's safe, right?" FL4K looked over to the older human, Zane, currently with the misfortune of being seated at the table Meat-Thief currently stood upon. "It ain' gonna throw shite at me, right? Or rub its arse on anything?"

"Meat-Thief is housebroken and trained. He knows better than to resort to such methods when he has a handgun."

"…oooookay…and is givin' a jabber a sound idea either?"

"I know what I am doing, human." Fl4K dragged their knife along another severed arm, removing more meat and tossing it to Broodless, watching her messily devour it as the Beastmaster reached down to rub at her head.

"So…pets, huh?" FL4K looked over to Moze, the Gunner fiddling with her ECHO device as she looked at them. "How'd you train 'em? I always thought it was impossible to really train skags, and that spiderants stuck with a hivemind or something. And don't even get me started on jabbers."

"Mr. Chew was the first I domesticated, through time and patience. It was…harsh work, yes," FL4K remembered the many times the skag bit them. "But it was rewarding to have my first hunting companion. Broodless came to me following the death of a queen spiderant, and she had a wounded leg following an attack by some bandits…far too injured to be healed. So, I fashioned a replacement, and healed her. As for the jabber…he came to me. I do not recall the details, but he was the only one to approach me, for food I'm guessing, but proved himself to be a useful pet." FL4K had fond memories of his hunts with his beasts. Enough to where, if the circumstances were different, they would eagerly aid the Firehawk with the beasts as opposed to the humans and siren.

But beggars couldn't be choosers, and besides…if things came down to it, FL4K saw them as potential meat shields.

Moze turned to walk away, leaving FL4K to continue feeding their beasts. The Firehawk could take all the time she needed. They had a feeling a glorious hunt was ahead, and FL4K wanted to savor and relish it all they could before moving on to the next hunt.

If it could top hunting a death cult, that was…

* * *

(So, it's been a long while since I've posted here, and especially for something Borderlands related. Honestly, I didn't plan to do something like this at all, but the creative bug was biting hard, and I ran through a few plot ideas before I came to a fair conclusion: why not do a "novelization" of the game's events? Granted, a few elements and things will be changed, such as dialogue, actions, and a few other things, primarily because I don't remember _all_ the details of the story, but...gist. So, I'll try to keep working on this, both as a creative new venture and as a way to exercise my writing ability; we can go ahead and call this a test chapter, to see if I can really meet the Borderlands style again. Who knows?

Thanks for reading, and have a good day!)


	2. Catching a Ride to the Sun Smashers

"…and then he said, try Pandora, so here I am!" Zane took a swig from the bottle of beer he found in the propaganda center, letting the glass bottle come to rest on the table as he looked over at Amara who drank from her own. It was dark out now, and Lilith was still gone. While Zane wasn't complaining, he did wish she could hurry up. The beer the COV morons had tasted like raw arse, and there wasn't much left. "I tell ya, Pandora's a lot…quieter than I'm used to. Thought there were outlaws and bandits everywhere, guttin' one another for the fun of it?"

"From what I know, there was, but then these Children of the Vault guys came along. Put them all under one banner or something," Amara took a drink of her own beer, sighing after she did. "If anything, it makes it easier. Now I don't have to go out and find them. They're all in one spot."

"Silver linin', right?" Zane's attention was drawn by bright, orange light behind him. The Operative turned to see Lilith had returned, shaking her head as she walked right past them, and deeper into the propaganda center. "Oi, Lil, you got something for us or…?"

"Huh? Oh, right, I think Shiv had something on the Vault Map; the thing the COV are basically salivating over. I'm gonna have a look around. In the meantime, I need you four to run over to Ellie's. Get the Catch A Ride system up and running again so you can digistruct vehicles here and there."

"And here I thought we'd be forced to run everywhere," Moze commented, putting her ECHO device away and getting to her feet. "Just tell us where to go. Beats sitting around here all day."

"Amen to that, sister—"

"Don't call me sister you Irish fuck." Zane just chuckled again. He was gonna enjoy messing with Moze. Zane hopped to his feet and tossed his bottle away, collecting his handgun and checking it.

"Mozzy Moze has a point," He grinned at her fuming expression. "Where do we go?"

"Instead of wasting time in trying to explain it, I'll just mark it on your ECHOs once I'm inside."

"…wait, what—" True to Lilith's word, Zane watched a small, cyan diamond appear in the map of his ECHO, not too far from where he was but still a bit away. "…well, let's get running. Sooner we do this, the sooner we get some wheels."

"Agreed, old man." Amara teased and got moving, followed by FL4K and Moze. He wasn't looking forward to the run, no, but he _was_ looking forward to meeting this Ellie.

She sounded hot.

* * *

Moze was…she wasn't sure how to feel. She and the others were standing outside the scrapyard Lilith directed to them, watching someone dispatch a bandit in a messy, but amusing fashion…someone who was…well, being nice, _big_.

"Oh, hey, you folks are the Vault Hunters Lilith sent, right?" She had a rich, Southern drawl to her voice, the woman visibly quaking as she turned to look at them, smiling warmly. "I'm Ellie, good to meet'cha. Y'all here to get the Catch A Ride system working, right? Or," Ellie looked over at Zane and flashed a sharp grin. "Y'all come here for something _else_?" Moze was finding utter delight also in the look of pure _fear_ in Zane's eyes, though it was clear he wasn't gonna get far if he ran, courtesy of Amara's hand being clamped down on his shoulder.

"The Firehawk sent us to get the system running, yes," FL4K spoke up. "But she did not inform me you would be so…ravishing."

…eh?

"Well thank you! Glad someone appreciates a girl with a lil' thickness, if ya catch m'drift."

Ellie was…well she was big alright, but she certainly wasn't thick.

Regardless, the large woman hobbled off, directing them to follow as Amara stepped forward, hauling Zane with her as Moze sped up so she could catch up to FL4K. "Hey, robotman, what was that about? You're into her?"

"I am. Something I've learned in my hunts and travels is that the more bulk a female has, the more enticing and fertile she is." Moze…was…she didn't know how to respond to that. "A good, Pandoran example is the spiderant. The bigger a female is, the more eggs she can rear, and thus the more enticing she is."

"Ooooooookay." She confirmed FL4K was weirder than she expected. But, still, at the very least, it looked like it'd be easy to get the system set: they just had to jack some rides from some bandits.

That wouldn't be hard, right? Just stab 'em in the face and take their ride...

* * *

Amara heard yet another explosion as she drove the Outrunner back to the propaganda center, looking over her shoulder to see Moze, still in the gunner seat, yelling loudly as she fired the rocket launcher again, turning another enemy Outrunner into nothing but spare parts and bits. Zane and FL4K were unaccounted for, mainly because the Beastmaster informed her that they were going to get the weapon's vending machine up and running while they brought the vehicle back to the station. It wasn't a far drive, but Amara was taking all the detours she could, namely, to let Moze have her fun in blowing apart anything that dared to get within shooting distance, and considering the Gunner's aim, that was far.

"WOO! Another dead COV fuck!" Amara found the Gunner's laughter contagious, chuckly earnestly to herself as she finally brought the car where it needed to be, hearing Moze begrudgingly disembark from it as the vehicle was digistructed and inputted into the machine.

"Looked like you were having a lot of fun out there, weren't you?" Amara asked as she checked the Catch A Ride's menu, working to see if she could digistruct a personalized Outrunner this time. Maybe purple and black. Give it some needed _flare. _

"Yeah, sorta…sorta a bad habit from my days working for Vladof. With the sort of stuff they had us doing, it's good to find fun wherever you can so you don't lose your shit and go crazy."

"And you find amusement in blowing things apart?"

"Yep. Ain't healthy, but…y'know, is anything in the borderlands healthy?"

"Ha, I suppose not. And, as a stranger once told me, healthy doesn't mean good…he then proceeded to eat a burger that I'm ninety percent confident was ratch meat…so..." Moze, of course, made a disgusted face, looking like she was about to vomit.

"Ewwwww…is that shit even edible?"

"I have no clue, nor do I intend to ever find out." Moze's laughter once again sparked some laughter from Amara too. She didn't expect to find friends out on Pandora, but she was glad she did. No one said the tiger had to hunt alone, after all.

"Awwww, are we interruptin' a bonding moment?" The Siren glanced over to see Zane pull his own Outrunner into the station, hopping out along with FL4K as it was deconstructed.

"No, just two girls having a pleasant talk, you Irish fuck waffle." Moze spat. Zane just grinned once again.

"Ah, gotta try harder with your insults, Mozzy Moze. Anyhow, robotman 'n I got that gun vendor up and runnin', so let's scrounge together any bills and cash we can find and let's get some cooler guns…thought I saw a…what…what was it again, Flakky?"

"A sniper with a shotgun underbarrel that lit things on fire also."

Amara was going to fight them for that weapon. Fight them and win.

* * *

FL4K was finally glad they were given some direction from the Firehawk; locate the Sun Smashers bandit clan. The bandits apparently found the Map to all the Vaults across the galaxy, and had planned to offer it to the Children of the Vault to gain entry into their "happy family".

FL4K knew for a fact it would end poorly. One didn't need a self-aware robot to figure that out.

The Beastmaster stepped out of the Outrunner, adjusting the new sniper rifle that was picked up as the robot looked at the sunrise in the distance. They usually didn't like to stay up so long, since they had a finite battery, but it was fine. Once they located the Sun Smashers and the map to the Vaults, then they could recharge.

Advancing with the others, hearing their pets in tow, FL4K was surprised to find the Sun Smasher camp in…well ruins. Not like it was abandoned, but as if it were assailed and attacked.

This theory was proven when FL4K could see some bandits walking around, bearing the same, demented motifs as the bandits at the propaganda center.

_"Shit, the COV got the Smashers? Damn…get after them. Last thing we need is them getting their hands on the map." _FL4K heard the Firehawk's voice from their ECHO. Zane and the others were already rushing in, the Beastmaster doing the same, but at a belated pace, namely to take pot shots at the bandits with their sniper, killing them swiftly as the robot heard…yelling. Not frantic screaming, but like someone calling for help. Placing the sniper onto their back and drawing their handgun, FL4K proceeding down a rocky path to…reach an odd sight.

A man in his undergarments and a cape suspended upside down.

"Oh, hey, can you give me a hand here?"

"…and just who are you?" FL4K asked. "And why are you…upside down?"

"Oh, this? Just…well my clan didn't take kindly to the whole…well refusal of the COV's offer. A-Also my name's Vaughn. Sun Smasher clan leader and all."

"Offer?" FL4K stepped closer. "You declined the invitation to the Children of the Vault; why?"

"Weeeeeeell, for a lotta reasons. One is that the Sun Smashers have more, ahem, pride, than that," FL4K found that hard to believe. "…and also, I'm scared of Tyreen…and also attracted to her…can you get me down? All this bloodflow to my head isn't good—" FL4K casually shot the chain holding Vaughn up, sending him tumbling to the ground with a grunt. "…ow. That hurts…a-anyhow, who are you?"

"I am FL4K, the greatest hunter in the galaxy…and apparently, hired help for the Crimson Raiders." Vaughn's eyes widened.

"Wait, you're with Lilith? Well we gotta find her! I got big news on where the map is!" FL4K just stepped to the side as Vaughn ran right past them, only to run right back into the cave, shivering. "A-Actually, I'll…I'll wait 'til the shooting dies down. Also, are those your friends outside? Cause…one just caused a bandit to, like, explode."

"That was probably Amara or Moze. Stay low until we finish our removal of the Children of the Vault. It should take a few moments." FL4K stepped back out the crevice and leveled their sniper's scope with a psycho, sniping the poor fool right before he could swing at Zane, the Beastmaster hearing the Operative shout a quick thanks before blowing another psycho's head off. FL4K was…conflicted about them now. Initially, they felt the other Vault Hunters were a means to an end; prey for later to be used to hunt a bigger beast, but now? FL4K felt they were perhaps on par with their beasts, at least, and said beasts were held in high regard.

They would see how things went. Perhaps they'd soon earn the right to be named as packmates. And, from there, maybe friends.

Friends sounded nice.

* * *

(Trying to add moments for character development, based on how I think these Vault Hunters would act. Tricky, since there's little info on the wikis about them, so I'm improvising a lot. Still, I'm glad to see so much support for this already, so I'll factor some time and energy into working on this more and more. Until then, stay safe!)


	3. The Twin Gods

"So, the map's gone?" Zane asked with disbelief, standing with the other Vault Hunters, Lilith, and the recently rescued "bandit leader" named Vaughn…someone who legitimately surprised the Operative. Guys like Vaughn were typically used as footstools or toothpicks for actual bandit leaders…guess Pandora really went to shite in his time away.

Zane didn't see that as a bad thing.

"Apparently," Lilith sighed. "Vaughn said the Sun Smashers had a falling out over taking the map to the Calypsos or keeping it for us. This, of course, led to a sizable number of them taking the key and leaving, but not before stringing Vaughn up and taking the supplies and loot from their former friends." Lilith sighed. "And then the COV hit the former camp. I'm guessing it was to tie up loose ends, something the Calypsos are doing better at, I'm seeing." Even though the COV were…y'know, baddies, Zane still had to appreciate the tactfulness they exhibited; reminded him a lot of his own work beyond Pandora.

"So, we go to the Children of the Vault and we take the map back," FL4K spoke up. "Where is it?"

"I-It's supposed to be out at Ascension's Bluff," Vaughn stammered. "That's where the COV have a broadcasting center…where they air some of their shows."

"Shows?" Moze raised a brow. "What shows?"

"Th-They're all over the ECHOnet. Pretty…pretty fucked up shows, really. Let's put it this way, they could put a snuff film to shame." Moze visibly winced at that, as did Amara. Truthfully, Zane wanted to wince too, but he saw worse in his travels…but still, that shite sounded bad. Real bad.

"It sounds like these Calypsos are utter deviants but know their audience well." FL4K commented. "Regardless, assaulting the broadcasting station shouldn't be too troubling. Not for us."

"Glad you're raring to go. I'll give you four some prep time, then you need to head out and get that map back before the Calypsos manage to decipher it." Zane stifled a yawn and turned to leave, heading outside the propaganda center and heading over to the gun vendor he and FL4K got working, fumbling for his cash from his pocket, humming a shanty to himself. Upon arriving, the Operative browsed the current selection of firearms, frowning to himself when he saw they were, generally, useless. Least for him. Mostly shotguns and snipers this time. He preferred stuff that kept him light on his feet, like SMGs and handguns. Plus, they went perfect with his Drone and Digi-Clone.

Grumbling nearby caught his attention. He turned to see Moze standing there, the Gunner looking downright infuriated as she fidgeted in place, clearly annoyed and muttering the words 'hurry' under her breath.

Naturally, Zane went _even slower_ in his browsing, audibly muttering over every selection and if it'd be useful or not. And, naturally, this led to Moze getting even more frustrated. He figured she'd realize he was fucking with her by this point but, amazingly, she still didn't, evident by her increasingly more annoyed grunts.

"HURRY UP AND BUY SOMETHING YOU IRISH POTATO!"

"And what's wrong with potatoes?" He turned to look down at her, the Gunner practically fuming before he took a look at the machine and just walked off. "Eh, don' need any new guns today. Maybe tomorrow." Moze's scream of anger made his day.

Now, let's see if killing those cultists did the same.

He walked back up to the propaganda center's overlook and was met by the sight of FL4K preparing for the job in his own way, telling his beasts that he'd be back soon and that jazz. But Amara?

Amara was glaring at him disapprovingly.

"What? Is this 'bout Moze?"

"What do you think?"

"I think she needs to learn that I'm just fuckin' with her; I do this sorta shit to everyone I'm chummy with. And, if ya hadn't noticed, we're a team now…a shite one, if I'm bein' honest, but…better than tryin' this shit alone."

"Just be sure she knows that. For all we know, she just thinks you're a sordid cunt."

"I've been called worse." Zane moved to inspect his SMG and drone, humming that shanty to himself again. Honestly, he fucked with Moze because, out of their little motely crew, she was the most serious; she treated it like she was a damn soldier in the fray, like she didn't even know what fun was! So, he had to show her, one way or another, what it was.

Besides, if she actually tried to kill him, there was always laying on the Irish charm. He was legitimately amused it got him out of more jams that he'd ever admit…and in one case, got him to send an assassin back after her contractors.

* * *

"The second we're done with this…COV, I'm shooting him in the fucking face…" Moze grumbled in her seat as Amara drove the Outrunner towards Ascension's Bluff, the Gunner so…frustrated she didn't even feel like blowing up any bandits en route.

…okay, that was a lie, but she didn't smile as she did it.

"You know he's playing with you, right?" She heard the Siren say, looking over to see the burly woman looking over her shoulder at her. "Messing with you and teasing you; it's a way to break the ice in some places. Shitty places, but y'know."

"Yeah well it's just making the ice harder. He's pissing me off and I wanna break his fucking face."

"That unfortunately means it's working. Besides, have you tried slinging insults back?" Moze furrowed her brow and sighed.

"I can't."

"Why? You can't think of anything that'll catch him off guard?" Moze frowned.

"…can I tell you something?" She reached down and shut her ECHO off, just in case.

"Of course."

"The whole insults thing…well, plain and simple, it reminds me of my team. Back when I worked with Vladof. We used to do the same thing to one another; throw insults and quips back at one another while we did jobs and handled missions with our Iron Bear mechs or on foot. Then Dazaran Bay happened."

"I take it that's a rough spot."

"…you could say that." She remembered it all so vividly. _Too_ vividly. "Putting it simply, I was the only one who survived and made it out. The others…they weren't so lucky. Sure, I hate Vladof, but…those guys weren't Vladof. Not to me, at least."

"…I'm sorry to hear that, Moze."

"It's alright. Just, that's mainly the reason I get so pissed off; because it reminds me of the guys who didn't make it." Amara was silent as the ride continued.

"I'll speak to Zane, then. See if I can get him to tone down his…well…Zaneness."

"You sure?"

"Positive. At least until you can finally get past your trauma. Won't be easy, trust me there, but it's possible." The way Amara said that, it hurt Moze a bit. Not just because she was having to try harder for her sake, but also because it sounded like she knew the feeling of loosing someone too.

"…hey, Amara, thanks for helping out."

"It's what friends are for. We _are_ friends, right?" Moze grinned.

"Of course." She could see the large, metal gates to the broadcasting station ahead, and of course it shared the same decrepit look as the rest of the things the COV had. She flicked the ECHO back on as the Siren stopped the Outrunner, the Gunner climbing down from the car and pulling her assault rifle from her back, pulling back the hammer.

"Alright, let's get this over with. You ready, shortstuff?" Moze was about to say something to Zane.

"Oi, old man, let's give the insults a break. Least 'til we finish this mission." Zane looked back at Amara with a bemused look but shrugged and walked ahead.

"Suit yourself. I'll save the one-liners for the cultists, then. Who knows? They might actually appreciate it more." The Siren flashed Moze a thumbs-up as she walked as well, cocking her shotgun and taking a pot-shot at a cultist who was too far out of cover.

One day she'd be over her trauma. Then maybe she could make some new friends; a new team. Or, funnily enough, she already found that new team.

"Alright, so, how we doin' this? Cause these shites look like they'll be trouble, and I know there's gonna me more behind that gate."

"I will run reconnaissance. You all stay here and wait." Moze looked over to FL4K just in time to watch them disappear completely, the Gunner blinking rapidly as she looked over to Amara and back to the spot the Beastmaster was a second ago.

"Did…did the robot just teleport?"

"Nah, if he teleported, we'd know." Zane piped up. "If I had to guess, it's cloaking of some sort. Active camo." Huh, for once, Moze was actually interested in something he said. Buuuuut her pride said not to engage.

"You know your tech, I see." Thankfully, Amara did it for her.

"Eh, comes with the territory. Wanted to use active camo with me own tech, but that shite's expensive…and unreliable."

"Unreliable?" Moze scolded herself for speaking up.

"Yep. Some active camo systems short out in water or when hit with an electrical pulse, like an EMP or just shootin' a fella with a gun with shock rounds. Fact, ya ain' even gotta hit 'em. Just shoot close enough and BAM, the rounds short the cloak out and reveal ya." Moze was now very worried for their robotic teammate. Enough to make her forget her disdain for Zane.

"And FL4K's gonna be okay?"

"Oh no doubt. We're dealin' with dumb shites whose greatest achievement is makin' guns that siphon bullets right from our packs 'stead of havin' to reload. Sounds fine 'til the gun breaks in the middle of a fight and ya gotta reload. Hence why I sold literally every COV gun I found. Basically worthless!" Moze had to agree there, once again.

"I have scouted the location." Moze flinched when FL4K spoke up on her right. "The main path itself is fortified, but not greatly. I counted about twenty-eight cultists and fanatics, including a single 'badass' psycho, and a few tinks. So, I recommend a methodic approach."

"And that is—"

**_BAM!_**

Moze winced when FL4K turned and fired. Moments later, a fanatic cried out in agony. "The fun way."

…maybe the robot was about as weird as the rest of them, if that were even possible.

* * *

"Shit! Everyone, get behind cover!" Amara called as she ducked behind a makeshift barrier, feeling machine gun fire pepper it. She checked her ECHO and winced as she saw her shields were virtually depleted; a few more seconds out in the open and she'd be dead or worse, and she didn't trust those New-U stations in the slightest…not since one "brought back" a tink with four arms and two heads.

Then again, Hyperon wasn't around to actually work on them, but she pushed those thoughts to the side as she watched Moze slide into cover next to her, Zane and FL4K taking the other metal barricade nearby, leaving a patch of dirt between them that was being peppered by machine gun fire and rocket barrages from a few turrets the tinks left outside the broadcast center directly to ensure no one got inside.

She was pissed, yeah, but she also had to credit them for their thinking.

"Alright, anyone got a bright idea?" She heard Zane shout amid the gunfire. "Cause there's some fuckers behind us and me barrier's not ready yet!" He punctuated this by turning to open fire at a rushing psycho, blowing his head off.

"I cannot cloak and move in. It's recharging, and even then, it won't last long enough for me to take out those turrets without giving myself away."

"And I can't call Iron Bear," Moze grunted, peppering a rushing cultist with her assault rifle. "She took too much damage a moment ago and would get shredded before I can even melt one of those turrets. Amara, you got something?" She furrowed her brow and sighed.

"I do, but I'll need you all to hang back." She could already see her tattoos begin to glow as she channeled and chanted, vaulting over cover just as she watched her astral arms appear around her, each clenched into a tight fist as she leapt up and, with all the rage of a tiger, slammed down upon the ground, the fists doing the same and blowing the turrets to bits in a glorious, explosive fashion.

"…wait, how long could ya do that? And why didn' ya do it sooner?" Zane was already mantling over cover and taking position on the other side of the barricade to take shots at the remaining COV.

"Because I hate relying on my powers, old man…that and they can take a bit outta me if I use 'em in rapid succession." Amara ducked behind one of the columns when the shooting began again, especially when she saw her shields were a bit depleted, a cultist managed to get a shot in on her.

She poked her head out of cover to blow away a fanatic with her shotgun, watching him explode into flames from the Maiwan shotgun as she blew another away. It didn't take long to wipe out the rest of the attackers, leaving their entry into the broadcast center clear as Zane was the first inside along with FL4K, Amara already hearing gunfire as, no doubt, the COV inside didn't appreciate their insertion.

"Moze, you good?" The Gunner was ascending the steps and reloading her gun, giving a quick nod to the Siren.

"Yeah, I am. Thanks for the save, by the way. I keep forgetting you're a Siren." Amara pursed her lips.

"Honestly, that's what I want sometimes." She wanted to talk about it more but, judging from the gunfire and Zane's shouts of excitement, they were missing all the fun. "Let's talk about it when we get back to the center, alright?"

"Sure thing. Let's see if these COV fucks can-OH SHIT!" Amara couldn't help but to laugh at Moze's sudden outburst when she was fired at. She tended to forget that, out of all of them, she was the one with the foulest mouth. But that was a quirk she liked in her friend. Sure as hell beat those spineless cowards who only wanted to be her friend for fame back at home.

* * *

The hunt was going exceptionally well. While they missed their hunting companions, FL4K felt it'd be safer to leave them back at the propaganda center rather than risk bringing them into an unknown hunting ground. FL4K was especially glad said pets were at home when those turrets came out; they had a shield generator, yes, but their pets didn't. Perhaps that was something to fix when the chance came.

Regardless, the Beastmaster stood over the dying body of the one called Mouthpiece, the curator and organizer for the twisted "livestreams" the Children of the Vault held. With the man dead, it'd hurt their foes' moral and perhaps cripple them for a moment to grant a reprise.

FL4K's attention was drawn by two holograms appearing in the room. And, for some reason, the Beastmaster felt annoyance well up at the sight of the two figures.

"Huh, did you actually kill Mouthpiece? That's the third Mouthpiece dead this week alone! Guess we're gonna have to reopen auditions again, right Troy?" Her voice irritated them. So much.

"I suppose you're the Calypsos." FL4K spoke.

"Thaaaaaat's right! God Queen, Tyreen, comin' at ya live with my brother Troy!" The way she said that told FL4K it was very rehearsed. "And, lemme guess, you're the four Vault Thieves runnin' around and killing our followers. Not really sure why; we can easily recruit triple the number of guys you kill." FL4K narrowed their eye. They knew humans could be cold blooded, but this was new.

"And we're also guessing you four are here for that map, correct? Don't get why; it's not working." And that was a concern.

"You fucks broke it?" Moze grunted, to which the two holograms broke into laughter.

"Oh…ha…ha no, just hasn't worked for us! And if it's not gonna cooperate for the Twin Gods, then I doubt it's gonna work for you four. But, hey, if and when you figure it out, we'll be in touch, and we'll just kill the four of you and take it back. Kay?"

"And what makes you think you'll be able to?" Amara crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. This, eerily, made the one called Tyreen smile.

"Another Siren? Of course, no wonder you're so arrogant. But, from one Siren to another, ya ain't gonna survive us comin' for you, kay? We're on a whole other level, and when we want someone dead, our followers deliver that in seven different flavors. So, be real. You won't survive, superfans. The Sun Smashers didn't." Her voice dipped venomously.

"And, lemme guess," Zane holstered his handgun. "You made 'em join your family?"

"Ha! As if! Check this out," The hologram snapped her fingers. A screen was displayed in front of the group that showed, eerily, the one called Tyreen grabbing a bandit by the neck and quite literally draining the life from him, evident by the bandit's lifeless husk turning into a gray statue with purple shards erupted from it…the same sort of statues FL4K saw around the area as they fought their way in.

Meaning, Tyreen had been busy. Quite busy.

"So, like my sister said," The one called Troy finally spoke up, adjusting that grimly metal arm of his. "Go ahead and fix that map for us, and we'll stop by to take it. Later." The holograms blinked away, and FL4K was both concerned yet excited. One of the Calypsos was a siren, which meant they'd get to hunt one after all, and mount their head on his wall back home.

Speaking of heads, Mouthpiece still lived.

As the others talked about what they witnessed and thought, FL4K approached the still breathing Mouthpiece, kneeling and drawing his curved jawbone blade, bringing it down into the bandit's neck and, gristly, began to cut and tear.

"Ewwwww! FL4K, what the hell are you—" Moze didn't even get to finish; they had already finished their task. The Beastmaster rose, holding the bandit's severed head, admiring the trophy before lowering it and looking to the others.

"I was claiming a trophy, and it seems two big ones are just ahead. Let's retrieve the map and head back to Lilith. Perhaps she can make sense of what they said about the map and it not working."

"Alright but…try not to cut any more heads off…least not around me. It's gross."

"…" FL4K just stared. "You blew a man's head off at point blank, yet _this_ grosses you out?" She pouted.

"I-It's complicated, alright? I don't like a head staring at me." FL4K just shook their head at the hypocrisy. It was amusing, at least. The Beastmaster looked over to see Zane pluck the map from where Mouthpiece dropped it, already setting off as the group began to leave the now desolate broadcast center.

Something about the Calypsos bothered FL4K. Namely, the way the siren fed on others. FL4K knew every siren had a distinct ability to them, such as Lilith with her Phaseshift and Amara with her Phaseslam…but if absorbing the lifeforce from others was Tyreen's ability, then FL4K had to wonder if it was purely to sustain her, or to instead empower her.

And if it was the latter, then every moment they waited was another moment she had to grow stronger. Hopefully, she could still be hunted by that point, but FL4K was almost curious to see what she'd become.

Then it'd be a hunt for the ages: apex predator versus apex predator, with the better hunter prevailing. FL4K was going to ensure it was them.

* * *

(Doing my best to ensure everyone's as in character as possible and allow for some character growth. Hopefully, I'm doing good there. I also appreciate all the faves for this story; I didn't expect this idea to be so popular, but it warms my heart regardless. I'm going to try to have a chapter done every Thursday to finally establish some consistency to my posts, so stay tuned for that. Thanks for reading and leave a fav and review if you wish. Until next time!)


	4. Clipped Wings

"So, Lil, can ya make heads or tails of what that broad Tyreen said?" Zane crossed his arms as he stood before the Siren, watching her look over the Vault Map they took down an entire broadcasting station to get. While granted, it was a cakewalk, it was still time consuming and therefore, Zane wanted to get something out of it. Unfortunately, so far, all he and his buddies got was the supposed god wasn't lying. The map really _was_ busted.

"Hmm," Lilith frowned. "Well, it's not broken, at least. But I can't make sense of it. But I might know someone who can?" Zane raised a brow.

"And who might that be? Are they as charming as the chums I've been workin' with?"

"She's…got a certain charm to her. Patricia Tannis. She doesn't stay far from here, so it shouldn't take long to drive over there and see what she has to say. If anyone's gonna know how to get this map working, it's gonna be her." Zane uncrossed his arms.

"Good, could probably afford to pick up some stuff while I'm out. Could use some new guns and I had me eye on that fancy gyrojet pistol I saw in the store." Lilith shrugged and offered the map, Zane accepting the strange, alien artifact.

"Just be careful out there, killer. If the Calypsos know you got the map working, they'll come for you all."

"Actually, 'bout that," Zane lifted a hand in interjection. "Why are we keepin' this thing from those two idiots again? I mean, sure, they're dangerous, but I doubt that's the only reason." Lilith raised a brow.

"Huh, never had anyone ask the why. Though, plain and simple, you just said why; they're dangerous, and if they find this Great Vault we'll all be in trouble."

"Then…why don't we just not fix the map, and 'stead hide it at the bottom of the ocean." Zane tapped said artifact. "With some elbow grease, this thing could prob' even fit a man's a—"

"Stop, enough…n-not your rant, you made some good points. I just don't wanna know where you can stuff the map." Lilith shook her head. "As selfish as it is, I'm also curious about what lies in the other Vaults out across the galaxy. The whole reason my friends and I became Vault Hunters, though we only thought there was the one Vault on Pandora. We later learned, following the demise of Handsome Jack, there were many Vaults, and then we came across that map." Zane lifted the relic to his good eye, giving a firm nod.

"So, you findin' the other Vaults is like an homage to your chums?"

"…one of them, at least." She sighed. "Regardless, while I want to keep the map out of the COV's hands, I also wanna know what's in them. Hence why we're going through these hoops to get it up and running." Zane was very…concerned about Lilith's plan, considering it was a good way to get even more people wanting him dead. Hell, the whole reason he came back to Pandora in the first place was to get that target turned to someone else. Yet, despite that, he could still understand the want to honor the memory of friends.

He was guilty of that in a few occasions.

"Alright, I'll peddle this over to your mate and see where it goes." The Operative tucked the map under his arm and walked back to the "lounge area" of the propaganda center, where he and the others had been sleeping and relaxing between tasks, coming to a stop when he saw it was empty.

Empty save for a certain Gunner slumped against a wall, browsing something on her ECHO.

"Oi, where're the others?"

"Amara went to help a bandit chef about something; said there was a gun involved. And FL4K said they're going 'hunting' I think." Zane frowned.

"Well, that's a damn shame. Lil' gave us our next job. Gotta run this map over to a mate of hers, and it looks like you 'n I are the ones for it."

"Ugh, pass. I'd rather let the COV gun me down than ride anywhere with you."

"Aw, cheer up, Mozzy Moze; play your cards right and both've those'll happen." She grumbled and he smirked. "Besides, I know ya can't resist the chance to blow some bandits into red chunks."

"…fine. But I'm only going to shoot bandits. Not help you. In fact, I'll be waiting in the Outrunner to make sure of—"

"Yeah yeah, let's go. Wanna get there and back so I can catch up on my stories."

"Your what?"

"I read things on the from time to time. Didja think I spent all my time killin' and bein' a badass?"

"I expected you to spend it in a retirement home." Zane didn't even try to hide his chuckle from that. Now she was finally insulting! Meant she was getting more relaxed, or he caught her with her guard down.

Either way, Zane was curious to see where things went. Kid needed to lighten up before someone lightened her up themselves…and not in a nice way.

* * *

Another bandit Outrunner exploded into bits. Moze gripped the handles of the rocket launcher tight as she lined the sights up with another, squeezing the triggers and feeling the gun lurch once more, the next ride disappearing in a shower of fire, blood, and metal as her grin persisted.

"Seems ya get a kick outta killin' COV," She heard Zane shout, Moze's grin fading as she heard the man talk. "I don' judge; at this point, it's either enjoy it, or get killed yourself."

"Yeah, whatever." She grumbled. It wasn't a far ride, no, but it sure felt like one, least with the old asshole around.

"So, you lost some soldiers, didn't you?" Her eyes widened, then narrowed.

"Who the FUCK told you?"

"No one. It's called guessing," Zane pointed towards his ECHO. "That, and I read about an incident happening in a place called Darzaran Bay, saw it was connected to Vladof, and then remembered you worked for them too. So, puttin' it together, I guessed ya were involved in that. Am I in the ballpark?" She just sat there, flabbergasted. That was eerily impressive deduction work.

"…yeah, I was." She hated giving him the pleasure of knowing he was right. "So, go ahead and mock me about this shit. I know you're gonna."

"I ain't."

"Then what are you gonna do then? Make fun of it? Say something witty about it? Something that'll piss me off enough to crack you across the face?!"

"Nope. I'm gonna say 'ya need to learn to let go'." He sighed. "Both of us have lost people. I just do a better job at putting it behind me. Have to."

"Well excuse me for not being as 'accepting' as you over the deaths of my men. It happened a few weeks ago! Sorta hard to just get over it when I can still see their faces when I sleep!"

"I never said it'd be easy." He turned the Outrunner, parking it and climbing out. "I just said ya had to let go. Never said it'd have to be today, or tomorrow. Or even the next day. Wasn't like that for me for all the jobs I did, nor will it be like that for you." She watched him leave, Moze processing over what she heard and…mulling on it.

She knew he was right. _Very_ right, but she still didn't want to give him the pleasure of being right. But, for a faint moment, she guessed that wasn't his goal.

Regardless, she climbed out the Outrunner and hurried to catch up, clutching her assault rifle in hand as Zane knocked on the door to the...very run-down place. Looked like whoever lived there never left their house whatsoever.

"Hello? Did Lilith send you?" She heard from the other side of the door. "Please say no, I'm in the middle of something that requires the upmost precision, focus, and the use of a skag jaw."

…what a weirdo.

"Lil sent us, yeah," Zane spoke up. "Said ya can make sense of this vault map—" The door flew open and Tannis stepped out, quite literally snatching the map from Zane's hands and looking over it like a madwoman. "…eh…wha—"

"Shh, I'm looking…yes…yes…no…yes—"

"Can you get to the fucking problem already?" Moze shouted. Tannis frowned in response.

"I was getting to that. The map needs to be charged." Moze's face fell.

"Seriously? That's it? It's outta battery?"

"Precisely. The Calypsos had this, correct? If so, then it makes sense. A Siren like Tyreen would be incapable of properly charging something Eridian in origin due to her Phaseleech ability."

"Phaseleech?" Tannis nodded.

"What I decided to call her Siren ability. My studies and research have shown that every Siren attains a major 'ability' when their powers awaken, and whenever they use said powers, their tattoos glow. Whenever she feeds on someone that happens, so I deduced that's her ability." Moze frowned at that. At least that was her only major Siren ability…even though it was basically lethal if she got within range.

"So, hypothetically, how would one get the drop on her and kill her—"

"If she's aware of you then you've already killed yourself," Tannis said without missing a beat, tossing the map back to Zane who struggled to not drop it. "And even if you catch her unaware, you need to neutralize her before she can grab you. If that happens then I'm afraid you'll be consumed. Anyhow, can one of you contact Lilith? I'd like to get this charged and ready so I can be on my way."

"On your way where—" An explosion of fire on Moze's right made her flinch; said Siren dispelling the flames and brushing herself off.

"I've had her on the line, like, this entire time." Zane tossed the map over to Lilith who caught it easily. "So, Lil, ya CAN charge it, right?"

"Sure, I'll just need a few minutes. And, knowing the COV…" She pointed behind her. Moze turned to see several bandits already running at them. "They'll be running in as loud as possible, begging for bullets to the face. Can you two handle them while I get this ready?"

"Sure thing. Also," Moze fumbled a bit when Zane suddenly tossed her a weird, fancy looking rifle. "Found that from the shop. Seems like it'd be something ya'd like."

"And why—"

"It fires gyrojets. They stick to people, then violently explode." Moze looked to the gun, back to Zane, to the gun, back to Zane, and then to the gun one more time before she frowned.

"…this doesn't make us friends, you know."

"Eh, don't expect it to. But, go 'head and turn these morons into gibblets," His Drone shot out as he plucked his SMG from his lower back. "I'll be busy with these COV bastards over here." Moze turned and open fired at the approaching COV, watching them stagger for a moment before the explosions came. Sure, the gun wasn't fully automatic, but she still enjoyed the damage the gun provided; Moze pacing her shots well and blowing each COV fuck to bits, though she winced when her shields flickered and then ran out from a few shots finding their mark, just in time for a maniac to rush her with a buzzaxe.

"BLOOD FOR THE TWIN GODS!" Pain shot through her head when the side of the cultist's axe struck the side of her head, sending her to the ground. Her head was spinning, and vision blurred, the Gunner rolling onto her back in time to grab her gun and use it to block the axe as the maniac brought it down, her heart hammering in her chest and fear clinging to her when she felt the weapon embed itself into her gun, Moze's hands slipping from the gun when the maniac ripped the gun from her hands and hastily ripped the ruined assault rifle from the axe as she raised her hands in a desperate attempt to block the strike she knew was going to hurt.

**_SHRICK!_**

She lowered her arms after hearing that wet, ripping sound. Magenta plasma claws were rammed through the maniac's chest, ripping upwards and splitting the bandit's torso in two as Zane stood over her, hip firing his SMG as the claws retracted into his gauntlet and his arm shot out to help her up. "Kid, you okay?"

"Y-Yeah, just a little dazed." Zane's Barrier was erected to stop oncoming fire, Moze waiting for the ringing in her head to end as she looked at her destroyed gun, pouting a bit. "Well shit, there goes that gun."

"I'll snag ya another when we get back. For now, take cover if ya need to." She didn't enjoy doing what he asked but she complied regardless, huddling down by a crate as Zane continued to pepper and gun down any COV that were approaching. Her head was still spinning but, thankfully, she was still alive…alive and having been saved by the one fucker she loathed.

Still, while she disliked him, she still had basic manners…somewhat.

"…thanks for the help, Zane. I didn't think I was getting out of that one."

"No problem. Get your shite together, then ya can help me mow down the stragglers. Think one of 'em dropped a rocket launcher." She sighed and leaned back. She expected him to make at least one snide remark, instead she got something that, for once, didn't leave her wanting to snap his kneecaps.

Moze mentally sighed. Maybe she'd give this teamwork thing a chance with him and see where it went, until he pissed her off.

It was bound to happen, but at least she can't get blamed, right?

* * *

Lilith couldn't help but to grin at the sight ahead. The ship was almost ready for takeoff, and she had gotten word a moment ago the Vault Hunters had finished helping Ellie fill it. Sure, she didn't agree with her friend's "fuel" method but if it worked, she was perfectly fine with it. It was nightfall at the time, with some rain gently sprinkling onto the ground, but she remained dry due to her abilities…a trick she picked up a few years ago to let her operate during downpours.

The Firehawk could already see the Vault Hunters hanging out at the entrance to the tunnel running under the ship's foundation to stay out of the rain, chatting to one another and, of course, waiting for her. Once the map was safely inside the ship, they could takeoff and finally leave Pandora, and hit the galaxy with the map!

…she wished Roland could see them now. She so deeply wished he could, but now wasn't the time to be upset. Now was the time to smile. Because it was about to end.

Lilith tucked the Vault Map under her arm as she approached the tunnel. Her eyes widened when the metal door suddenly slammed shut.

"Hey, Firehawk, long time no see, eh?" Her blood ran cold from that voice. She turned to look over her shoulder and saw the last two people she wanted to see…the "twin gods" of the COV. Tyreen grinned once their gazes met, the other Siren crossing her arms and leaning back.

"…this is the first time we've met." Lilith noted.

"I know. Gotta sound cool for the fans, Lil', and the fans like one-liners. So, here's one, give me the map or I'll murder everyone in this whole base." Lilith's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not giving you the map."

"Okay, fine. Have it your way." Pain shot up her stomach, Lilith finding herself on her back from a savage kick Tyreen dealt in a flash. Keeping the map under her arm, Lilith teleported to another spot, getting to her feet and turning in time to feel Tyreen's fist against her cheek, sending her staggering back, map still tucked under her arm as she wiped a trail of blood away from the corner of her mouth.

"Gotta say, I thought you'd be tougher than this, Firehawk," Tyreen chided, taking long, confident strides towards her. "All those rumors, myths, and legends about you? Honestly, I wish it didn't have to come to this, but, eh." Lilith grit her teeth.

"It wouldn't have, if you weren't a maniac." She grunted. Tyreen rolled her eyes.

"_Maniac_? I _united_ Pandora, Firehawk! Brought them all into one, big family, and finally gave every bandit a chance to be a part of a bigger whole—"

"By lying to them?"

"By telling them what they wanna hear, actually, and exaggerating a detail or six. Not really a lie, cause I never said it _wouldn't_ be in the Great Vault." Lilith's eyes narrowed. She had an idea to finish things, but it was…messy, to say the least.

Her fist raised. Right when Tyreen got close enough she slammed it into the ground, fiery energy erupting from the ground and sending the demented Siren flying back with a satisfying **_crack_** when she hit the wall nearby, slumping to the ground. Rising to her feet, Lilith kept the map underneath her arm as she noticed a metal camera drone drifting close to her, the Siren smacking it away and, without any hesitation, she teleported over to Troy, fist meeting his face and sending the lanky man to the ground, fist raised to finish him.

And then she saw the red markings along his arm. The distinct, unmistakable red markings that left her flabbergasted.

"You're a Siren?!" Troy lowered his arm to look over said markings, the lanky fucker just grinning.

"Yeah, well…runs in the family." She turned in time to feel Tyreen's hand clamp down onto her neck. The map tumbled from her hand as both hands clamped down onto the enemy Siren's arm…and then she felt weaker. VERY weak. And, worse yet, she saw red energy flow down Tyreen's arm, the COV leader grinning the entire time.

"What are you…?"

"I can drain _anything_, Firehawk," She felt even weaker. "And that includes your powers, it seems," Even weaker. "So, thanks. Now I got some neat, new tricks." She was numb now, and she could barely keep her eyes open. Her hands fell away from Tyreen's wrist as she felt the world spiral, aware that she was on the ground, then being moved. She could only hear the muffled sounds of them talking, yet she knew they were gloating, mocking her even Mocking her failure.

It burned her pride. Brighter than any fire she ever made.

Her eyes drifted open as she was on her side. She watched the two of them walk away, map in hand, before they disappeared in a bright flash of fiery energy…the same energy whenever she Phasewalked.

And then she could see the silhouettes of approaching COV. She was too weak to move. Too weak to get up and run. Too weak to do anything!

…anything except lay there and wait for them to finish her off.

…well, at least she'd be with Roland again. She just wished she had a better story for him for when they met.

One of the COV jerked and collapsed. The others looked up and she heard the muffled shout of 'sniper' before the one pointing succumbed to the same fate. She felt someone lift her and sling her arm across their shoulders, relief flooding her when she saw it was Zane, joined by Moze for her other side.

"Lil? Lil, can ya hear me?" She heard the old man at last. "You good? Cause…well…yer tattoos are gone." She felt her heart sink from that. They really _were_ gone. That bitch took them from her. And now, no doubt, they were en route to the first Vault location.

"G…Get me to the ship." She slurred. She just needed time to get herself together…get herself together and get everyone up to speed on what was happening.

What happened to _her_. Because now Tyreen was armed with a new power, and with the Map in their possession they were one step closer to finding that Great Vault and, if it was real, becoming Gods.

…and then the entire universe would be screwed.

* * *

(This one was significantly harder to write. Shorter by a long shot, I didn't have as much time to write this one as I was celebrating a birthday, working on homework, and also DMing a Dungeon and Dragons' session for my brother's friends. So, it was hard finding time to write this chapter, as dark as this one is. But, hopefully, I conveyed the dread well. So, as said, I'm going to try and upload every Thursday, though I'm going to push to upload in the mornings from now on as opposed to…well late at night. Thanks for all the support, and apologies if this one falls short.)


	5. Promethea, here we are!

The ship was a nice one. It reminded Zane of the type of vessel he used while careening through the galaxy, handling jobs and tasks for a wide assortment of lowlifes, baddies, and corrupt companies. Standing on the bridge, waiting for Lilith, he was reminded of the severity of things once more, and that he wasn't visiting such a craft under pleasant circumstances.

He was there because the fucking Calypsos took the map _and_ Lilith's powers and then bailed like a smart guy after a kegger.

"It…still doesn't make any sense." The Operative looked over to Amara as she also stared through the window and into space, arms crossed as her features were scrunched in thought. "…it doesn't make any sense and it scares me, for once. Nothing scares the Tiger! Except this, apparently…"

"Nothin' makes sense anymore, Amara," Zane wished he had a pint to sip on while he was talking; always helped bolster his words a bit. "But what's scarin' ya so badly?"

"What Tyreen did to Lilith. You saw her when we took her to the Med Bay, correct? Her tattoos are gone; that…_bitch_ managed to steal her powers!"

"Yeah…that…that's pretty jarring." Zane was trying to be modest. That was fucking terrifying and then some! And, clearly, she could use said powers too; while he and the others were fighting their way to save Lilith he literally watched COV bastards teleport into the fight in the same manner Lilith did…or used to, rather. So, now their enemy had a new trick up their sleeve.

"But, knowin' ya, that ain' what's scaring you." Amara nodded.

"I'm afraid I could suffer the same fate." She sighed. "As much as I try to distance myself from my siren powers they _are_ still a part of me, and I wouldn't trade them for anything, much less let them be sucked out by a shitty streamer, or whatever the hell her and her brother are."

"Eh, all things considered, the chances of that're pretty low." Zane affirmed. "No offense to ya, but Lilith was in a class of her own with those powers of hers. And now that the bitch has them I doubt she'd go through the trouble of taking yours too…but yeah, just stay careful out there, okay?" She smirked a bit.

"You're shit at pep talks."

"I'm more used to shootin' peoples' feet to make 'em motivated. Believe it or not it works wonders." Zane turned when the doors parted, going a bit rigid when he watched the former siren herself step inside…or rather limp. She still looked absolutely drained from what happened but at least now she didn't require anyone to stand.

"Hey, um…h-how're ya doin', Lil?" Zane was treading carefully for once. Considering what she went through he didn't want to draw open any old wounds. "You look drained—" He clamped a hand over his mouth. Fucked up already.

"I'm…I'm gonna be okay." Amara's visage softened.

"You sure?" Lilith's gaze averted for a moment before she nodded.

"Yeah, my powers may be gone, but I can still command this ship and keep things in order 'til we get 'em back from Tyreen. May take putting a couple hundred bullets in her head but I'm all for that." Zane grinned. She was damn near her old self!

"Now ya're speaking my language. But, let's save the shootin' and lootin' 'til after we figure out where they're going next—"

"Promethea." Lilith said without missing a beat, stepping further into the room as Tannis and Ellie entered as well, Zane making a _wide_ berth around Ellie to avoid her, for legitimate reasons. "Closest planet to Pandora with a Vault on it. They don't have the key, so we can at least beat them there and clear the Vault out before they get there."

"And that will stop them?" Amara asked.

"It'll at least slow them enough for us to get a lock on the Calypsos, and from there it's all about how many bullets we're filling them with." Lilith chuckled. "So, let me plug in Promethea's coordinates into the map. Let's get a move on."

"Hey, Lil, bad luck to take a ship out without a name." Ellie spoke up. The former siren shrugged.

"She's already got one; Sanctuary…the place we all built together, and the place we fought so many times to defend." Zane liked that. Really gave some significance to things. He did turn when he saw that annoying robot roll in; that annoyance became panic when the little shite began messing with the navigation.

And then that became tranquility when the Operative began floating up into the air, arms crossing as he watched everyone else in the bridge float as well from the clear lack of gravity.

"Damnit, Claptrap!" Ellie shouted. "Ya fucked up the gravity-generator!"

"Hey! Blame this rust-bucket! Not me-WHAOOOOOOO!" And then he was stuck in the window, namely, his backside was stuck in a hole made during said commotion and confusion of the ship prematurely launching. Zane righted himself when he felt gravity reactivate, the old man brushing himself off and looking to see Amara doing the same.

"Ugh…Vault Hunters, go check the rest of the ship. Make sure no one's hurt or worst. Report back here when you're done and, hopefully, we'll be ready to _actually_ head to Promethea…and also have that window fixed, too." Zane nodded and started walking, hearing Amara follow as, in seconds, he could hear Moze's raving and ranting from his ECHO.

"Why's Moze so pissed off?" The Siren asked. Zane shrugged.

"Knowing her, she was in her room working on her mech…soooooo she's probably trapped underneath some parts. We better hurry."

At least their departure from Pandora was an interesting one, and thankfully a break from the tension of what was at stake.

* * *

Moze rubbed her sore back as she walked alongside the other Vault Hunters, grumbling and grunting about being trapped under Iron Bear's railgun when the gravity kicked back in. She was thankful FL4K was the one to get her out and not Zane or Amara; she didn't want to give the Irish fuck any more ammo of insults against her and she didn't want Amara to see her so…vulnerable. Vulnerable was one of the last things she wanted to be in front of Amara, not because she didn't respect her, but actually because she respected her too much.

She _was_ one of the only ones she could tell about her Vladof days, after all.

The Gunner focused when she set foot onto the bridge, feeling a slight lurch as one of the others directed the ship and, in a flash of light in the windows, she could see the planet of Promethea in the close distance…along with an assortment of Maiwan ships around it, some descending to the planet and others returning from the planet as well.

"…huh…" Moze crossed her arms, looking at the _very_ disturbing scene. "Soooooo…tch…alright, I'm gonna be the one to ask it. What the flying flipping FUCK is Maiwan doing here? Isn't this planet owned by Atlas?"

"Looks like we're not the only ones with an eye on Promethea, apparently." Lilith shook her head. "We're gonna have to do this the hard way. Vault Hunters, with me." Moze stuck close to Lilith as the former siren got to walking, the others doing the same, though they lagged behind a bit.

"Hey, Lilith, about what happened on Pandora…" Moze watched her features contort into a frown. Truthfully, Moze didn't even want to talk about it, but she knew she had to. She had to know where they stood.

"We can't let it slow us down, Moze. So, until I get my powers back…_if_ I get my powers back," She could hear some pain to her voice with that one. "You four'll have to pick up the slack for me, and that means you're gonna have to go planetside."

"Excuse me, planetside with a buncha Maiwan ships flying about?" Zane chimed in. "That doesn' sound like a smart move, and this is comin' from the guy who unclogs crappers using bandits."

"It's not," Lilith shook her head, moving to slide down a latter as Moze did suit, the Gunner noticing the former siren was bringing them to the cargo bay of the ship. "But it's all we got. Maiwan's no doubt jamming Atlas' COMs, and that means you're gonna have to go planetside and make contact with them directly; if anyone knows where the Vault is it's gonna be them."

"And we're sure they're jammin' the COMs?" Lilith nodded.

"If they weren't, my contact there would have already called. He always does when he's in trouble."

"That still raises a question," FL4K spoke up, Moze turning to see the robot petting their skag. Seemed they opted to bring the faithful hound for the job. "How _are_ we getting planetside? The Fast Travel system aboard the ship is…out of commission. Thought I caught the sight of a drunk man trying to 'interface' with it, if you humans know what I mean."

Moze didn't. She didn't intend to find out.

"With this." The Gunner looked over to see what Lilith had brought them to see; a drop pod. Situated in the back of the narrow hallway, the door was slid upwards and showed four metal seats within, all sporting safety harnesses to ensure anyone inside didn't get a headache as it dropped.

"Hold up," Zane uttered. "Ya want us to drop down in _that_?"

"What's wrong, old man? Scared of a drop from orbit?" Moze legitimately felt good when she watched him frown, not so much when he walked off, stating he'd be right back. The Gunner crossed her arms and turned her attention to Lilith. "Seriously though, we're dropping from orbit in this thing?"

"No other option. We try flying down in this ship Maiwan's gonna blow us apart. Only option we have is dropping the four of you planetside and, when a chance arises, sending a drop ship to retrieve you four and return you here." Moze scowled.

"Why not just send us in the ship, then?"

"Maiwan'll have time to identify a drop ship and blow it up. They won't have time to identify a hunk of metal falling at a thousand miles a second. Besides, we don't have a means to get another drop ship if it blows up."

"…but the pod's fine?" Lilith nodded.

"Ellie can digistruct a new one. So, 'til we get a stable means of dropping you to a planet, this'll have to do."

"Well, let's get this show on the road." Moze stepped back when Zane walked past, the Operative holding a literal arm-full of alcohol as he plopped down onto one of the seats, setting his many bottles of booze down so he could strap himself in.

"…where did you even—"

"Moxxi runs the bar; her and I had a few one-night stands and she owed me a favor. So, got some whiskey, gin, scotch, and even some rum for the ride down. I'd rather die drunk than screamin' after all." Moze just shook her head, stepping to the side again when Amara and FL4K boarded the pod as well, strapping themselves in as Mr. Chew settled himself between the wall and the seat FL4K occupied, the skag smart enough to strap himself in somehow.

"Augh…I just hope this doesn't kill us." Moze stepped in last and strapped herself in, watching the massive door slide down and lock into place.

"_It won't."_ She heard Lilith say through her ECHO. _"Ellie ran the numbers; pod's only got a forty-nine percent chance of killing you."_

Moze paled. That progressed into a tirade of frantic swears and curses when she felt the pod lurch upwards and, for a moment, her to feel weightless. Through the window on the door she could see the ship getting smaller and smaller, meaning they were hurtling towards Promethea. And they were hurtling towards it _fast_.

"I would like to confess something," FL4K spoke up. "If by some chance you all do not make it."

"Oh yeah? What is it, tinman?"

"I monitor all of you while you're resting for weak points throughout the course of the night. If we all survive, I will continue to do so."

…Moze made a firm note that, if she lived, to lock her new room's door from now on.

* * *

Her head ached, her stomach was spinning, and her muscles burned, but for the most part, Amara was doing well from the pod's…well…crash into the ground.

Stumbling out the pod and onto the dark soil, the Siren reached up to clamp her mouth shut and make sure she didn't lose her lunch, swallowing down the bile that was building and turning to check on her team.

Moze was face down on the ground, noisily expelling the contents of her stomach. FL4K was standing away from the pod, examining their skag for any injuries.

And Zane?

"Woooooo! Let's do that again!" Zane was being dragged out of said pod by his digi-clone; the hard-light construct fading once the old man was safely out the pod. Zane hopped to his feet, shaking his head as he looked around; his jubilee expression turning instead to a grimace as he reached down to mash a hand on his ECHO device. "Oi, Lil, ain' we supposed to be where Atlas is? Why the fuck are we at the city limits?" True to Zane's words, they were indeed just outside the futuristic, technological city. Amara's eyes roamed over the tall buildings decorated in shining lights as, more or less, the city of Meridian looked to be the pinnacle of progress and prosperity…save for the Maiwan forces assaulting the place. That sort of lowered the appeal.

"_Because right before you launched, Tannis said she picked up a distress beacon outside the city. Don't know who launched it, but whoever did seemed to be from Atlas. Save them, and that's your way to contact my source."_ Amara couldn't fault that logic, though she wished Lilith told them before just adjusting their drop location.

Regardless, everyone was back up to speed; even Moze. Checking her ECHO, Amara saw the distress beacon's location wasn't too far from their current position; was just a hop, skip, and a jump through some wetlands and they'd get there.

…said wetlands had ratches scurrying about. Amara shuddered at the sight of the filthy creatures, almost finding comfort when FL4K suddenly blew one's head into pieces with their sniper rifle.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Let's hunt!" The skag took off running and everyone followed suit, Amara peppering a ratch with her shotgun as she heard an ECHO transmission emanate from her device.

"_Command, do you copy?! Bandits are appearing out the bloody thin air! I'm pinned down over here! Send back-up!"_

Amara's blood froze at that. The COV were already on Promethea?

"How'd those cultist fuckers beat us here?" Moze cried out, hastening her pace to keep up with the others. "I don't remember them having a damn ship!"

"The cruel siren Tyreen attained Lilith's powers. With them would come the ability to teleport mass distances. So, it's possible she's simply teleporting her forces here to try and route us, or at least attempt." Amara wanted to throw a retort, but she was…disturbed by that. Tyreen took those powers less than a day ago, yet she already had the knowledge and power to move people thousands of miles away!

Amara knew she was inevitably supposed to kill Tyreen and Troy, but now she was slightly conflicted on if she could do it. Least without a scratch like she wanted.

The Siren's train of thought came to a halt when, like clockwork, several COV cultists appeared from nowhere, in the same fashion Lilith used to appear. And, like clockwork again, her team gunned them down and kept moving, Amara cracking one upside the head with the butt of her gun as she ran along with them, reaching a clearing where the distress beacon was originating.

Someone was busy holding off a line of cultists, open firing with an assault rifle and doing a pretty good job at killing them. They lasted even less time when the team open fired on the remaining cultists, dropping them like dumb, confused ratchlings. The area was, for once, quiet, and the someone holding off the bandits calmed down and relaxed, stepping forward.

"Well, that was a shitshow, wasn't it?" She looked like a civilian turned soldier; rugged and a bit hardened from fighting. The woman sported sharp green hair, a few piercings, and a dangerous looking Vladof assault rifle that. "But, you four have some good timing. Oh! Forgot to mention, I'm Lorelei; did Rhys send you?"

"Okay, first, me name's Zane, good t' meet'cha. And second, who the fuck is Rhys?" Lorelei lifted a pierced brow.

"My…boss? The CEO of Atlas?" Amara smirked. Things had a funny way of working themselves out, apparently.

"So, you were the one who sent out the distress beacon?" FL4K asked, the woman giving a quick nod. "Then Death smiles on you. We were sent to make contact with Atlas regarding the Vault here on Promethea…and…unfortunately, the crazed animals trying to kill you are also in search of it, in the name of the Calypsos."

"Damn! Well, means we gotta move, then. Sooner I patch you through to Rhys the sooner we can get something done about these assholes. Cause," She kicked over a dead fanatic. "These bandits got their hands on Maiwan guns. So, either they raided a supply locker before getting here…"

"Or Maiwan's supplying them., and might even be working with them, too." Moze concluded with a frown. "Let's go, then." Lorelei turned to start jogging ahead, everyone following suit and—

"_Hey, superfan, you finally made it!" _She heard that snide, sick voice right in her ear, courtesy of her ECHO, Amara's joy at finally getting somewhere brought to a skidding halt. _"Gotta say, took you long enough. We've been here for a while already. Might even make friends with Maiwan and get them to help us get that Vault. We'll see." _Amara's eyes were narrowed. Looking ahead, she saw the others weren't reacting at all; Tyreen called her only.

"Why are you calling me, witch?"

"_To give you one last chance to join me. Cause, and this is one siren to another, there's no way you're stopping us. We have a whole ARMY of crazed nutjobs willing to turn you and your friends into bloody instruments in our name, and all you have is a Firehawk with clipped wings and a run-down ship we can probably just blow outta space." _Her blood ran cold at the sound of that. The Calypsos knew where the ship was? _"So, make the smart choice and play for the right team before it hits sudden death, 'kay?"_

"I'm on the right team already, you bitch." Amara hissed, clenching her ECHO device hard enough to almost break it. "And mark my words, I'm gonna rip those powers from you and give them back to their rightful owner before I rip your head off in front of your followers." Instead of malice, she heard Tyreen just laugh.

"_Ahahaha! Good one, superfan! See ya real soon, then. Can't wait to see what powers I'll get from you." _The transmission went dead and Amara let out an irked, furious sigh.

"Hey, Amara?" She looked over to see Moze had lagged back, the normally furious and stoic Gunner low looking outright worried. "You good?" She was hesitant for a moment but finally mustered a nod and a smile.

"Never better, friend. Now, let's kick these cultists off Promethea in body bags."

* * *

FL4K was moderately impressed by Meridian. Pulling the trigger of their sniper and downing another Maiwan soldier, the Beastmaster still found their optic drawn to the cityscape, admiring the destination for their latest hunt. A few shots rang out that reminded FL4K what they were doing, optic peering through the scope once more to pop a Maiwan soldier's head like a grape, lowering the weapon and following with the others, sneakers emitting low _crush_ noises as they walked along the damaged street.

"C'mon, we're almost there! Watershed Base isn't too far from here." Lorelei called, the Beastmaster seeing said base up ahead that, sharing the trend of much of the city, was crawling with Maiwan soldiers, one of their drop ships hovering by and depositing several more of the elemental soldiers to the ground to fight, making FL4K wish they had a mouth to scowl with.

…fact, there was a lot of things FL4K would do with a mouth. Like say words that began with the letter B…seemed quite fun and something the humans took for granted.

The fighting broke out in a flash, FL4K taking cover behind a ruined car along with Amara as bullets peppered the spot they were in moments ago. The Beastmaster saw that their shields were virtually depleted; they were using shock weapons to render them helpless. A clever tactic, yes, but FL4K was always the hunter, never the hunted.

"There's a lotta guys here!" They heard Zane shout, the robot turning to see the Operative pinned behind a car with Moze and Lorelei. "Tinman, ya got something?"

"…I do, yes." FL4K let out an electronic sigh, emitting a sharp whistle that drew Mr. Chew over as the Beastmaster reached out to rub the skag's head, hearing the beast affectionately growl and lap at their metal fingers.

…it always pained them to use this ability, but there was no other choice.

Crackling, radioactive energy surged around FL4K's hand, the Beastmaster stepping out of cover and pointing right for the thick of the troops. In a flash, the skag was gone, reappearing at the designated spot…but the beast was changed.

For starters, the skag was MUCH larger, and was coursing with yellow, radioactive energy that surged about Mr. Chew as, without hesitation, he decimated and mauled any Maiwan soldier stupid enough to be too close.

"…how long could ya do that?" Zane asked. FL4K looked over to the Operative.

"A while."

"Why's this the first time we're seein' it, then?"

"Because Gamma Burst taxes my rechargeable energy core and exposes my pets to radiation that, in prolonged bursts, could lead to defects and even unwanted mutations. It's my most powerful ability, but the one that comes with the most costs." Zane fell silent after that, FL4K turning their focus to the now deceased mob of Maiwan troops, the skag regressed back to his normal size as, once again, the beast seemed to care very little that he was even enlarged to begin with, running back over as FL4K knelt to pat and caress the skag's head. "Good boy. I'm so proud of you."

"…well…the way in's clear. Let's go open the door." Lorelei stepped out from behind cover as the group advanced towards the metal bulkhead doors. Moze was the one to open them, FL4K taking aim and open firing when, from within the room, two Pyrotech Heavy troops emerged; said troops were silenced swiftly…and depressingly.

"Woo! Get bent you wankers!" Lorelei cheered, brushing herself off as she stepped over to the terminal in the room's center, entering in some things and fixing some stuff before she stepped back and pointed to the glowing green button on the keyboard. "Anyways, Vault Hunters, go ahead and contact Rhys. The connection to Atlas HQ's still secure, so we shouldn't have Maiwan interrupt it. Not without us noticing, at least." FL4K nodded and stepped forward, mashing their finger down onto the button as, within seconds, a large hologram appeared from the terminal of a strange, mustached man with a robotic arm and an artificial eye.

"Hi! You've reached Rhys Strongfork; CEO of Atlas Incorporated and wartime general with a rocking mustache. Now, before I continue, I have a question: WHO ARE YOU AND HOW'D YOU GET THIS SECURE LINE?!" FL4K hoped this Rhys wasn't Lilith's contact. He sounded, and looked, like a dork.

"Rhys, easy. It's me, Lorelei. We got Watershed Base back under our control and these Vault Hunters are…hang on." Lorelei's face scrunched up. "What _is_ that on your face?"

"Oh this? Hehe, this is my _siege_ mustache; the troops love it and _I_ love it more. A-Anyhow, who're your friends?"

"I am FL4K, and we're here on behalf of Lilith, of the Crimson Raiders."

"Wait, _Lilith_?! Oh shit, we're allies and best buddies!" FL4K wished they could grimace. "S-So, what's she sending? An army? Death mechs? An army _with_ death mechs?!"

"Nope, just us." Amara affirmed. "Unless you want to count my biceps." Rhys looked terrified.

"W-W-What?! I can't take back this city with just you four!"

"Rhys, relax. They're pretty good, might not even need an army with the skill their packing. But, that's not our main concern right now; seems Maiwan's got some help. Bandits are flooding Promethea and they seem to be working with those bloody bastards; seems Katagawa's cut a deal with the Calypsos. Don't know what, but I can't imagine it's good for any of us."

Rhys managed to look even more terrified. A feat FL4K didn't even know was possible.

"WHAT?! Great…j-just great. Everyone's just piling on. UGH! But, whatever, we can savage this. I salvaged Atlas and look where we are now!"

"Bein' invaded by Maiwan, from the looks of it." Zane grinned.

"…d-don't remind me. A-Anyhow, I need you four to meet up with my top agent. He's about to strike at Maiwan's Gigamind not too far from here. If those bandits are here for the Vault, going by those weird late-night broadcasts the COV air on the , then Maiwan's got the data on its location stored in said Gigamind. So, Lorelei can mark it on your maps and…well…stay safe! I'll be in touch. Oh! And if Lilith calls ask her if we can get some siren assistance if it's not too much trouble. Later!" The hologram faded and the room was left with an air of awkwardness.

"…ssssssso…tch…who's gonna tell him Lilith's not comin'?" Zane asked.

"I'm unsure, but," FL4K turned towards Lorelei. "I'd like some time to prepare before we strike at Maiwan directly. Is there a power station nearby?"

"Um…yeah…one in the corner. What are you—" Lorelei didn't get to finish. FL4K pulled their blade from their side and stabbed it into the station, convulsing and twitching as electricity surged through their systems, feeling wide awake and alert when their core was filled to the brim. The Beastmaster's blade was ripped from the wall and FL4K turned towards their cohorts, seeing them all with expressions of confusion, fear, and in Zane's case, confused interest.

"…what?"

* * *

(So, another chapter done! This one was also hard because, as a reviewer or two pointed out, I'm trying to stay loosely adapted to the campaign for Borderlands 3 while at the same time deviating and doing my own thing. It's tough, but I'm don't want to bore fans so, gotta mix things up.

Also, this chapter's weird because I was also busy with an exam. An exam I probably didn't do so well on.

BUT, good news, at least; I'll be able to upload a new chapter every Thursday around 7PM my time. This way my readers will be off work and back from classes and able to enjoy it. Was gonna upload around 11AM but…eh. This feels better. Sort of a good way to end the day. So, for now, please enjoy. I should have my crap together by next week and deliver a stellar chapter as opposed to the last two.)


	6. A Mind Divided by 0

"So, you all set to go?" Zane sipped from a mug of coffee, taking a gentle sigh as he looked over at Lorelei or whatever the hell her name was. Back in the recently captured fort the Operative and his friends had been…busy, to say the least; preparing to meet Rhys' contact and handling other situations and things around Promethea, including getting the coffee shop running, killing some weird guy out in the slums with lightning, and even restoring a burger joint so the soldiers could eat!

…granted, Zane was never going to eat said burgers, considering it was made with ratch meat. He was legitimately sure that was how plagues happened. Super plagues.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. We're good, I'm guessin'. That vendor's working, so I got that new handgun I've been wantin' for a bit," Zane tapped said firearm at his side; a sort of pistol that fashioned itself onto his arm and fired fuckin' rockets. Shite for subtly and stealth, but nice for pure carnage. "Anyhow, yeah, we're ready. We takin' a technical or…"

"Actually," The coffee soldier walked over to the Catch-A-Ride station, typing some stuff in before stepping away. "I was thinking you four should travel in style." Something digistrusted a second later; something Zane recognized as one of those nifty Cyclones Lorelei used earlier.

"Oh shite, we each get one now?" She nodded. "Hey! Mates! We all get Cyclones!" Zane didn't hesitate to climb into the one Lorelei digistructed, adjusting the seat and—

"OH SHITE!" And he found the ignition and turbo, the Operative's hands gripping the controls as the ride sped off down the road. It didn't take long to get it under control, Zane catching a breath as he turned a corner, looking over his shoulder to see the others were in tow behind him…though FL4K was lagging behind.

Namely because the robot had his damned Skag in his lap and was trying to drive around said beast taking moments to pop up and lick at his face. That earned a chuckle from Zane.

"So," He looked over to Amara, the Siren doing her beast to keep her own Cyclone under control and directed. "Lorelei gave us the location as to where we meet this informant, correct?"

"She did, yeah; we're closin' in on it." Zane squeezed the triggers and lit up a Maliwan Cyclone that made the mistake of riding past, the Operative hearing it explode when Moze finished the job with her own machine guns. "Though three guesses as to who it is, and I might have a hunch."

"A hunch? Why?"

"Maliwan's got this entire city covered; whoever it is has gotta be good at hidin' or killin', and if it's who I think it is then they're both and then some. Also, we're here." Zane brought his Cyclone to a stop and disembarked from the vehicle, clamping his strange pistol onto his arm and peppering a nearby Maliwan soldier, hearing the others do the same as they quickly cleared out the plaza the guards were unfortunately tasked with protecting. Zane reloaded his gun and started walking, but not before noticing Moze staring at…something on the ground. As silent as could be, the Operative stepped over and saw she was looking at a stuffed animal, one that no doubt belonged to a kid who was fleeing with their parents.

…said stuff animal had blood on it. Zane, for once, was at a loss for words about that. He knew this was a war and all, yeah, and he also knew Maliwan would light up anyone in their crosshairs…but…still.

"Moze, ya okay?" She flinched and turned to look up at him, giving a quick, but shaky nod. "That ain' convincin' me, Moze…that bear's gettin' to ya, ain' it?" She was silent for a moment before nodding again and turning her eye back to the fallen bear, kneeling to scoop it up and look over it.

"Shit like this…I should be used to it but…somehow, it always gets to me." She shook her head. "Just…hurts me as a soldier knowing there are people dying out there, especially in this case; people're dying 'cause those Maliwan dick waffles wanna merge with Atlas and take over Promethea."

"Yeah…sorta…sorta saw shit like this too, back in me days as a…well a lotta things." Zane wasn't good with pep talks still. "But I got a proposition for ya, then. You can sit there and look at that bear, or you can take it with ya and we can run these Maliwan fucks off Promethea for good. It won' bring the tike back who owned that doll…but it'll at least ensure ain' no one else is gonna join 'em."

"…I can do that." Moze clipped the stuffed bear to her belt, standing and reloading her firearm. "Thanks, old man."

"Don' mention it. So, let's go meet our contact." The Gunner walked ahead, the Operative looking back to the spot Moze picked the bear up from in the first place.

…maybe when this was all over, he'd pay Maliwan a personal visit. In all his years of working and doing jobs for many of the scum and lowlifes across the cosmos, Zane had a few lines he wouldn't cross, no matter who paid him. One of those lines was killing kids.

So, Maliwan had officially found itself on his shite list. They wouldn't be there for long.

* * *

Moze kept her assault rifle in hand as she stuck close to the others, reaching the end of the plaza. Ahead was an overlook of some sort, living up to its namesake as it granted a grandiose view of the desolate city freeways.

And someone was standing at said overlook. Someone who was…quite odd. They looked like a ninja of some sort clad in black and grey armor, and with a strange, featureless helmet. What also caught her was the fact this ninja was missing their pinkies…so they were probably not human. Probably.

Said ninja whirled around and vanished when, like clockwork, several Maliwan robots dropped down. It all happened in the blink of an eye, but they were all dispatched and destroyed in the blink of an eye.

And then he reappeared, sword in hand as he sheathed it and looked over them.

"So, you all are here/the Vault Hunters Rhys has sent/we need to go now."

…

"…did he just talk in a damn haiku?" Moze's question was overlooked when FL4K stepped forward, the robot crossing their arms and nodding.

"I didn't expect to find you here, Zer0."

"Likewise, Beastmaster/I also didn't expect/you to find some friends."

"Heh, things happen, friend."

"Wait, back up," Moze shook her head. "FL4K, you know this guy?"

"Of course; we bought our cloaking devices from the same manufacturer." FL4K chuckled. "Even had a good chat about killing people while we were picking our devices up, too. Good times. I AM glad he recommended the Model-Six over the Model-Five I was eyeing."

"It has a longer/battery life than the five/so it's clearly best."

"Right you are…bit pricier, though."

Moze was…perplexed. Her team got around, apparently.

"Oh, wait, that's Zer0?" Zane chuckled. "We went to the same assassination class! Hey, ya remember the instructor? Wh-What was his name again?"

"I forget."

"Oh. Either way, he was a shite. But glad we both graduated alive, though it looks like ya've been more practical about things, though; straight to contract killing."

"It helps with the bills." The assassin started to walk. "We need to move, though/it will not be long before/Maliwan sends more guys."

"Eh, we tend to mow straight through them." Amara chuckled. "But I share your concern. Let's go." Moze stuck close to the others as she walked, the Gunner still…skeptical about the strange person Rhys had as a contact. Speeding up a bit, the Gunner reached out to tap the assassin's back, watching him look down at her.

"How'd Rhys land someone like you as an assassin?"

"Money." Ah…that made sense. So, Zer0 was a lot like her…except a lot quieter in his approach. Moze trailed back and tapped FL4K side when they walked by, the Beastmaster slowing down to look down at her.

"Why's he talking in haiku?"

"I…if I recall right, it's to stand out among assassins." Moze raised a brow at that.

"What's the point of standing out as an assassin? Isn't the point not to be seen?"

"Business standpoint, I suppose." Moze didn't get any of this. She just noticed it was almost nightfall and, hopefully, it helped their mission.

…her thoughts still fell to that teddy bear and the fate of its owner. Any effort to fuck with Maliwan was greatly appreciated. And she was going to make sure it was an explosive effort as well.

* * *

Amara's fist sent another Maliwan soldier to the ground, flicking her wrist as she looked over the battlefield of a base that, of course, her and her cohorts were finishing up with defending. Zane's barrier was up and shielding him as he peppered some soldiers, Moze was stomping on a Maliwan soldier with her Iron Bear, and FL4K was popping heads with their sniper. It was all going quite well and, had Maliwan not dispatched that other drop ship, they'd be done with time to spare! So far, there was still time but…none to spare.

…Amara made a mental note to work on her one liners.

"Well done, Vault Hunter," She turned towards Zer0, flinching slightly when the strange ninja-like assassin just…appeared out of nowhere; reminding her he and FL4K had the same sort of cloaking device. "Now we must enter this place/and take what I came for."

"And…what IS it that you came for, assassin?"

"You will see." He turned to drop down a hatch, Amara looking to the others before following with him. Within, Amara followed behind Zer0, making sure to pop open the red crates she found along the way, seeing they were filled with an assortment of firearms, shields, and even grenade mods.

"Least we found where Maliwan gets their arsenal from…"

"It's one of many/but only this one has it/the thing I came for." Amara raised a brow but continued to idly look, the Siren popping open a chest that…this time, didn't have a gun, shield, or grenade, but some sort of weird item she couldn't readily identify, the woman plucking it up and turning to the assassin.

"You wanted this?"

"Indeed; it will help," The assassin reached his hand out for it. "Please, give it to me quickly/and I will help you."

"Help how?" The assassin reached behind him and, in the blink of an eye, produced a nifty looking sniper rifle he offered. "Oooo~ Looks exotic."

"It is and isn't/it is my age-old sniper/I will part with it." Amara had to think. She had little to no use for a sniper rifle, considering her tendency to beat people to death, but FL4K could probably make good use from it.

"Fair trade." She tossed the device over to Zer0, the assassin catching it and tossing her the rifle in return, Amara reaching down to mash her hand onto her ECHO. "FL4K, got a sniper for you. Seems pretty decent."

"_Good. I need to replace my current one anyhow. The underbarrel shotgun's nice but impractical."_

"Oi, take that bag. Shotguns are anything but impractical." She was cut off when she heard several, sharp slashing sounds, the Siren turning to see Zer0 standing at what used to be a shield wall.

"I will be in touch."

"Hold on, Rhys sent us to you to…I dunno, find the Vault Key, I'm guessing. Lilith wasn't really specific."

"Oh, that?" Zer0 extended his hand. "Give me your ECHO/and I will help as I can/with your noble hunt." Amara was getting tired of the haiku thing but she complied regardless, handing the assassin her ECHO unit as he swiftly entered something in, handing it back to her as, on her map, she saw a new location; one not too far from the place they were at.

"What's this?"

"The answer you seek/where the Gigamind rests at/the info rests with it." And the assassin was gone; cloaked and moving away. Amara stood there, puzzled, before she placed the ECHO back onto her hip and adjusted it a bit.

"Hey, Lorelei, any clue what a Gigamind is?"

"_Gigamind? It's a Maliwan AI system. Decently guarded, but we haven't got a lead on its location."_

"Your friend's informant hooked us up. We know where it is and apparently, we're going to kill an AI…I guess. There's a Catch-A-Ride here so we can shoot over and take care of that in a flash."

"_Awesome! Just be mindful, the soldiers've reported it's a tough customer. Be careful, Vault Hunters."_

"Careful's the one thing I ain't and I'm still pretty fine."

* * *

FL4K made a note to get Amara a gift for her act of kindness. The new sniper, inherited from their old friend, was a whole league better than their original one. Even had a shield on the front to stop incoming damage, too!

The Beastmaster dismounted their Cyclone and let Mr. Chew shake himself off as the robot approached the wall within the service tunnel that, based on the data Amara showed, was going to provide a shortcut to Gigamind, their new hunt. Hunting and killing an AI; FL4K was moderately interested to see if such a thing can be killed and made a trophy.

"Your hunt begins, friend." FL4K turned to see Zer0 uncloak, the assassin now wielding a molten red blade he didn't hesitate to slash the wall to pieces, clearing a direct path in a flash. "Hunt down the AI my friend/and bring back its brain."

"My pack and I should be able to handle that," FL4K stepped to the side as Zane, Moze, and Amara walked past, all ready to fight. "But here's hoping my strike is the final one. Otherwise, it's a poor hunt."

"Mhm." Zer0 cloaked once more, FL4K producing a whistling sound from their chassis to send Mr. Chew forward as the Beastmaster emerged from the tunnel, finding the AI in question that…was more or less a human brain encased within a chassis of its own; said construct using an assortment of small discs to attack and defend itself.

…FL4K was perplexed. But that didn't stop them from open firing at the AI, lining up the sights of their new scope with those little discs to knock them out the air and to deny the Gigamind some defensive utilities. The fight grew more cumbersome when, predictably, Maliwan soldiers began to flood the area, forcing FL4K to shift focus from denying Gigamind defensive abilities to popping the heads of any Maliwan soldier unfortunate enough to be in their line of sights.

"AGH!" FL4K's optic shot over to Moze. The Gunner was crouched down behind a cinderblock for cover, clutching her leg as, with her remaining hand, she used the cinderblock to support her gun as she fired. FL4K didn't even need to look hard to see she'd been shot; a stray bullet managed to embed itself into her leg, but the Gunner could still fight.

And yet…FL4K was pissed. Something they were unused to. Anger. Anger over one of their friends being hurt; a member of their pack. The Beastmaster fired one more shot with the sniper before slapping the firearm onto their back and sprinting, mantling over the block Moze used as cover and, gruesomely, plunging their jawbone blade into a Maliwan soldier's shoulder, the man screaming in bloody agony as FL4K's hand clamped down on his neck, spinning him to use him as a meat shield from return fire. The body was virtually paste by the time FL4K threw it to the ground, activating their cloak and, once more, disappearing from sight, yanking their handgun from their side and open firing, optic zooming in and narrowing to make the shots as precise as possible.

Several Maliwan soldiers cried out and fell to the ground, the remaining ones being mopped up by the others as FL4K mantled back behind the cinderblock, kneeling next to Moze. "Are you well, Moze?"

"What? O-Oh, sorta…might need to get this bullet out a-AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" In the time she spent talking FL4K, without any hesitation, plunged the tip of their knife into the bullet wound and scooped the bullet out, flinging it to the ground. "WHAT THE FU—" Her strife was silenced when the Beastmaster jammed a health syringe into her leg, watching the wound rapidly mend and close.

"There, that should stabilize you."

"…oh…well…alright then. Also, you could have just used the syringe; just makes bullets pop right out as the flesh regenerates."

FL4K just stared at Moze. Honestly, they forgot how those things worked and, given the anger, they weren't thinking very clearly either.

"…it WAS pretty cool though, right?" FL4K didn't even react when Moze punched their face, only for her to swear rapidly and clutch her hand. "…please don't do that—"

"Um, hey, hate to interrupt…buuuuut," FL4K poked up from cover to see the deactivated chassis of Gigamind, Zane standing over it. "Whaddya want to do with the brain?"

"Claim it and bring it to Lorelei. If this contains the knowledge on the Vault Key, we can deduce its location via its memory." The old human nodded and collected the brain, turning to walk as FL4K offered a hand for Moze to take so she could stand.

"Apologies for my rash thinking, Moze." They spoke. "I saw you were injured and reacted as I knew to protect a member of my pack." She had an incredulous look on her face but complied regardless.

"Um…pack. What's…what's that mean?"

"A pack is a family. And you are of my pack. Therefore, you are family."

"Huh. I…I can get behind that. Just…don't go stabbing me in the leg again, okay?"

"No promises." FL4K was going to wait for the right time to do so…

* * *

(Alright, another slightly rushed chapter. I was tempted to hold off on the Gigamind part, but I had to include it. I had another exam today so, as a result, my focus was primarily on studying for the week to combat it. So, to avoid from repeating a chapter like this, since it's not up to my peak expectations, I'm going to start working on a chapter on Monday as opposed to Wednesday like I typically do. That way, come Thursday, I can breathe easy. Besides, the next chapter's going to veer off the campaign course considerably. So, stay tuned for that, okay?

Stay safe!

Also, PS, I spelled it as Maiwan last time; BeIIIIII or however it was spelled; apologies if I got it wrong. I was reading your name on mobile and the font makes it hard to discern between I's and l's.)


	7. Getting Back Home

"Alright so, hey, you got the brain! Good work!" Zane pulled the cork from a bottle of rum he found on the way back to the base, watching Lorelei take the retrieved brain from Gigamind and plug it into the computer terminal, rapidly typing things into the keyboard as the Operative shrugged.

"That we did. Fun lil' job, too. Saw some sights, took some pictures, blew a few Maliwan soldiers away. Same old same old." The Operative took a swig from his bottle, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Ya got that info, yet?"

"Yep! Sent it all to Rhys. He should be in contact…now!" And, once again, that hologram appeared…Rhys still trying to rock that disgrace of a mustache. But it had a certain charm to it…an ugly charm.

"Well done, Vault Hunters! Now we know all of Maliwan's plans for the next few weeks, and we can easily plan around them and force them to abandon some strategic positions and—"

"Yeah yeah, that's fancy 'n all, but where's the stuff we came for?" Zane interjected. "Where's the Vault Key location?" Rhys frowned.

"That's…not on the Gigamind." Zane frowned.

"Then where is it, then?"

"I have it. Lilith never told you?" The Operative took a long, deep sigh.

"No, I don' reckon Lilith told us." She probably did and he just forgot. Regardless, given the circumstances, Rhys would have just asked them to go kill the Gigamind regardless to get the information on the Vault Key's location…besides, he found a cool gun from the wreckage of that weird robot. Something called the Smart-Gun XXL. Neat gun; Zane just wished it was made by anyone but Tediore…his time working with them brought some shite memories. "Augh…so where is the key?"

"_Fragment_," Rhys corrected. "The key's split into three fragments, and, honestly, the hardest one's offworld." Zane's face fell.

"And where is it?"

"Athenas. Where that little monastery is; why it's there? Dunno, think the Atlas before me put it there so no one could open the Vault down here easily. A-And given the usual things that come out Vaults I'm perfectly fine with that." Zane rolled his eyes and took a long swig from his rum, mashing a finger down onto his ECHO to dial up Lilith.

"Oi, Lil, Vault Key's split into three."

"_Tch, I had a hunch…where are the fragments?"_

"The mustached wonder says one's on Athenas; I know bits 'n pieces 'bout the place but nothin' to give me an advantage on where it'd be."

"_Athenas is home to an order of individuals; on the bright side, I have another contact there. A friend of mine from a long time ago. Her order no doubt has the location, so you'll need to meet up with them."_

"Well, alright then. So, where we gettin' picked up from? Wanna hit Moxxi's bar 'fore we zip off."

Lilith was silent. Zane furrowed his brow.

"Oi, Lil? What's goin' on?"

"_You…augh…you might need to find your own way back to Sanctuary, Killer." _Zane's face fell.

"What the fuck happened?"

"_Scans of the aerospace is showing Maliwan's getting a lot more active down there; enough to where if we try to get close, they'll light us up before we can even get through the atmosphere." _He wanted to be pissed off, but she was making some damn good plays with that. Sanctuary wasn't a destroyer battleship or something else; it was a damn civie ship, all things considered, and he knew damn well ships like that weren't meant to get anywhere close to combat.

And then an idea hit him.

"Oi, Lil, I think I know how we're gettin' back. We'll see you in…'bout four hours. Less if we're fortunate. Even less if we're dead."

"_Just be careful. With how things are I can't afford to lose any of you. Until my powers are back you four are the only thing standing between the COV and galactic domination." _Zane took a long swig from his drink, feeling the bottle run light as he sighed blissfully.

"Well, now ya just raised the stakes a bit. But, sure sure…you might've given me an idea." He ended the transmission and turned towards the other Vault Hunters. Moze and Amara were chatting by the gun vending machine and FL4K was messing around with their skag as per the usual.

Stepping over and clearing his throat, Zane tossed the bottle into a trash can nearby. "Alright, we gotta find our own way off Promethea."

"WHAT?!" Moze exploded with rage. "She's leaving us here?!"

"…Moze, no," Zane grimaced from her shouting. "Maliwan's buzzing more than a varkid nest in the summer; Lilith's scared that if she tries to come in for a pickup the ship'll get blown to bits. And I ain' even gotta tell ya how much that'll fuck us over."

"Agreed," FL4K spoke. "Then the only way for us to return to Sanctuary is to either wipe the Maliwan army out, which I could perhaps do but it'd divert my focus away from murdering the Calypsos as violently and perversely as physically possible, or find a way off the planet ourselves safely."

"Well, glad I figured that out too. We're stealin' a Maliwan drop ship." Everyone's faces fell…well he assumed FL4K's did too.

"You want to steal one of those damn ships?" Amara crossed her arms and scowled. "How do you plan to do that? Wait for one to hover by and jump in?"

"Yes and no," Zane cleared his throat. "I did some work for Maliwan back in the day; way before any of this, mind you. But still; did enough work to know sorta how they do things."

"And?"

"Drop ships are one of the few things we can acquire that'll survive atmospheric travel, and I know how to call one for us. We just need to get a Maliwan captain's ECHO frequency, send a distress signal to any drop ships, wait for one to show up, and hijack it."

"…how?" Moze questioned.

"They use, like, weird gravity technology to pull troops into their ships. We just need to stand under it and it'll automatically pull us into it." Unless they patched that but considering Maliwan's…weird policies on upgrades they'd only fix it if it became a problem. So, they were most likely fine.

"I dunno…" Amara shook her head. "This all seems risky…why can't we just take a Promethean ship or something?"

"Cause Maliwan's gonna ID it as a threat then blow it 'part faster than I can drain a pint…and I hold the record for that, y'know." Zane chuckled and Moze rolled her eyes. "All jokes aside, I planned all this shite out. Maliwan dropship, so long as we make sure the original crew dies, will let us slip past their fleet and get to Lil and the others, though someone may wanna ECHO her and let her know what we're doin'." The others seemed generally on board now, so that was progress.

"Where will we find a Maliwan captain, then? Mr. Chew's eager for their flesh to devour." Zane pointed over his shoulder to the computer terminal Lorelei was busy working at.

"We just handed 'em ALL Maliwan's plans. Troop formations're gonna be in there somewhere, robot man."

Zane was liking this plan. It was damn near suicidal and had a high chance of unsuccess; just like how he liked his work. Hence why he had a perfect job rate.

* * *

Moze was still moderately…worried over the idea Zane had. Granted, it _was _a very clever one, she was also worried of the many gaping holes in said plan, too.

Then again, considering the old fuck's usual planning process she was amazed there was a plan to begin with.

The Gunner adjusted herself in the back of the newly acquired technical, looking over her new Atlas assault rifle and checking to make sure she had full ammo, looking up at FL4K as they did the same with their fancy new sniper rifle, the Beastmaster's pet resting next to them peacefully.

"So…you got that from Zer0 or whatever he was called?"

"Yes. Or, rather, he gave something to Amara who, in turn, gave it to me because she didn't favor sniper rifles."

"Huh…hey, question?"

"Answer." She sighed. They learned humor, apparently.

"How do you even use snipers? Doesn't that require…y'know…two eyes?" FL4K shook their head.

"Not really. My optic can zoom in and provide a clearer picture for my neural receptors, much like when you squint. And, through this, I can get a much clearer picture of my prey and aim for their weakest point fluidly. If anything, me having a single eye makes sniping unparalleled."

"And, while we're on that topic…why the hunting thing? I mean, it's a bit late to ask but—"

"It's alright," FL4K waved a hand. "You and I have never had moderately quiet moments like this, so there was little chance for you to attain an answer. As for the answer in question…it helps."

"With?"

"When I attained sentience the first thing that came to my newly acquired mind was, honestly, murder. Not blind, senseless murder like our prey, but calculated, and methodical murder. In other words, I wanted to kill everyone and everything I came across, but I didn't want to do it blindly and without reckon, like the Children of the Vault we hunt and slaughter like dumb, foolish animals." Moze was now regretting asking. "But, around a week of attaining sentience, I learned about hunting; how humans take up arms to hunt creatures for sport. And, from there, I found a new calling."

"To…hunt."

"Yes. It's not senseless killing; it's me hunting worthy prey and claiming trophies from them in Death's glory and in the name of the Thrill of the Hunt, so to speak. It's through this I met and raised my pets." Moze was…still at a loss for words.

"It…makes you happy, at least…?"

"Oh, naturally. You could even say it gives me purpose. Originally, I was just a robot designed to guard and protect the archives, but now? I can do as I please, and it's a nice feeling." Moze was happy for that, at least. Sure, she was still slightly mortified by what she learned, but she was glad her teammate was happy and found their calling in life.

That was something that, naturally, took her a long time to get.

"What about you, Moze?" She snapped out of her daze.

"Huh?"

"What are your origins?" She pursed her lips at that, humming.

"…it's…a ride. But, sparing you the boring details, I wanted to be a mercenary." FL4K showed no visible reaction.

"Why did you wish to be a soldier of fortune? While it's a lucrative life, yes, it's also one with an incredibly high mortality rate."

"Few reasons; I wanted to travel the galaxy, and I wanted to help people. And, as a merc, I could do that AND get paid too. Don't get me wrong, I _did_ remember and consider the whole high death thing…so I went to Vladof."

"Why?"

"Their Iron Bear division; basically, a bunch of soldiers in mechs wrecking shit. I saw that, in their contract, it said that after their term they were gifted a nice severance package and could keep their mech. So, at the time, I figured I'd do some gigs for Vladof and, when my contract expired, I'd take some cash and Iron Bear to go work on that mercenary thing."

"And things did not go the way you planned?" Her face fell.

"That's putting it lightly. Every job that was supposed to be the 'last job' ended up being second to last or third to last; Vladof was skewing the contract to essentially keep us working for them forever. And…well…" She sighed. "My…men died in a bad incident, and as far as Vladof knows I'm dead too. So, that scratched the mercenary thing off the table cause…y'know…Vladof might try to hire me and see I'm still alive, and that wouldn't go so well since, technically, I'm AWOL. So, instead, I became a Vault Hunter. Not as fancy, but it meant me and Iron Bear could still travel the galaxy." FL4K nodded.

"Apologies for the loss of your men, also."

"It's alright. Still messes with me from time to time but I'll manage." She sighed. "So…I guess that's all there is."

"I suppose so. It's good to speak like this from time to time. One must get to know their pack, after all." She nodded. She still found it weird that, in such a short time, FL4K essentially named her and the others their family but it was a good weird; meant they'd stick together for a long time.

Who knows, maybe when all was said and done, she'd invite the robot to come with her; let them hunt Vladof and see where that goes.

Moze felt the Technical come to a stop. Seemed they arrived. Stepping down from the back of the Technical, Moze saw they were at what looked like an abandoned apartment, but the Maliwan soldiers out front told her differently. Soldiers, when far from base, tended to make outposts out of whatever they could; this was no different.

"So, we're looking for a Maliwan captain," Moze stepped to the side when Amara dropped down from the passenger seat. "We need him alive or…?"

"Huh? Nah, course not." Zane loaded his fancy new SMG, popping his barrier up and open firing at the Maliwan soldiers in view. "We just need his ECHO. So…don't blow it up." Moze didn't hesitate to call down Iron Bear, the Gunner jumping off the hood of the Technical as the mech digistructed around her. Her hands gripped the controls and, like so many times before, she lit up the Maliwan soldiers and turned them into red mist in a matter of seconds…all but one.

Namely because FL4K's skag was mauling said soldier, with the Beastmaster giving an approving nod. She had to admit it was sort of funny.

* * *

Amara parked the Technical at an abandoned intersection, the Siren sighing and looking over to Zane who, the entire time he sat in the passenger seat, fiddled and worked with the ECHO they acquired from that Maliwan captain.

She was still disappointed by said captain. She was expecting someone who would give her a damn good fight; not someone who fell over like a sack of bricks from one punch to the stomach. She supposed Maliwan got too reliant on their weird and, slightly, shitty tech.

"Is it ready?" She asked, and he nodded. "What are we supposed to do with it?"

"Nothin'." Zane tapped the bloodied device. "It's gonna emit a distress beacon that'll draw a drop ship over. Crew hops out to check, we board the ship, take over, and boom! We got a way home AND a consistent way to get to and from planets…cause fuck that pod Ellie made…shite sucked." She chuckled and nodded in agreement. The Operative leapt out the Technical and walked over to a desolate bar, Amara catching a glimpse of him pushing a button on the ECHO and quite literally chucking it as far as he could into the place, rushing back to the Technical and yanking his gun out.

"…so…" Moze piped up. "How long will it be?"

"Oh…bout now, actually." Right as Zane said that a Maliwan dropship loomed overhead, lowering down swiftly and rapidly to let seven soldiers drop down to the ground, rapidly rushing into the store.

"Well that was a fast response," Amara looked over to see FL4K already taking aim with their sniper. "How did you incite such a response."

"Eh, just said Moxxi was down here offering free drinks and favors. They'll be in there for a while." Amara grimaced from the lecherous implications…but at least it worked.

"So, who goes into the ship?"

"I will," Zane was already walking towards the underside of the dropship. "It'll give me a chance to see what I'm working with, too. You just wipe the crew out 'fore they tell their bosses it's a trap." Amara nodded and stepped down as well, pulling her newly acquired RPG out and setting the weapon onto her shoulder, waiting for the soldiers to step out the bar before firing, turning their disappointed grunts into agonized screams. Naturally, one rocket didn't take them all out, so of course, Amara fired more, watching the remaining soldiers dive for cover as, when the gun ran empty, she sprinted towards their hiding spot, clapping her hands together as her tattoos lit up. Leaping off a damaged car, Amara's astral fists swirled around her and she slammed into the ground, Plaseslamming the Maliwan troops and sending them skyward in time for her friends to light up, decimating them and taking care of their problem.

"We're done out here, old man," Amara mashed a hand onto her ECHO as she stood up. "How are things in there?"

"_Done already? Shite…still figurin' these controls out. Thought I'd be done by now but, apparently, they changed some shite up."_

"Ugh, can you fly it or not?" Moze asked with some ire.

"_I can, Mozzy Moze. Just may take a moment or two to get used to." _Amara cautiously kept her shotgun at the ready as the dropship hovered over, the Siren feeling suddenly weightless as she realized she was caught in the ship's grav lift, bringing her up into the ship. The interior shared the same color scheme as the rest of Maliwan's stuff, and the inside only had a few seats and a pilot's chair at the front.

And, naturally, the big hole in the floor from where she was pulled in.

"…that seals up when we hit the atmosphere, right?" Amara questioned as she stepped to the side, watching FL4K float up, holding their skag protectively. The Beastmaster dropped down and set the skag down, the dog-like creature giving a few, panicked whimpers and nuzzling the robot's leg, earning a muffled chuckle from Amara.

A slew of curse words resonated and Moze floated up as well, the Gunner face-planting onto the floor when Zane cut the grav lift off and sealed the hole in the floor. "…I'm kicking your teeth in, old man." The chuckling was harder to suppress with Moze's muffled voice, considering she was still on the floor.

"Let it wait, love," Zane leaned over the seat to look at them. "Someone phone Lil and let her know how we're getting back. Don' want anyone panicking and shooting us." Amara nodded and watched FL4K do just that; the Beastmaster stepping over to the corner in the room to contact their ally. With that being tended to, Amara stepped over to Zane and saw a plethora of screens all around the pilot's chair, bringing a scowl to her face.

"What is this shit?"

"Camera view of what's going on outside...y'know, cause this shite ain' got windows." Amara looked to the screens and, generally, saw a mix of views…nothing she could center herself on, unfortunately.

"You're sure you can fly this?"

"Yep. Flew one a while back. Granted, it was on fire and was technically crashing, but still." That didn't help Amara's worries. The ship lurched and she felt them begin to move, no doubt taking the most direct path to Sanctuary and Lilith.

Alarms suddenly began to blare and flash, and Amara was very worried. "Old man, what the fuck is happening?"

"Eh…no…one…panic, but I think Maliwan knows this ain' one've 'em." The Siren stepped over to see, in the right most camera view several other dropships in close view. "Don' know how, though; you killed all the guys, right?"

"Of course we did; they were turned into a pile of fucking body parts!" Moze shouted. "I knew this bullshit plan wasn't gonna fucking work—"

"_Hey, superfans; saw you guys were trying to steal a ship, so we thought we'd make things interesting." _Amara's eyes narrowed when she heard that insidious voice in her ECHO. _"Wasn't hard. Troy just contacted every Maliwan ship in the area and told them the Vault Hunters were hijacking a ship. Couldn't tell 'em which so, most likely, they're scrambling to identify everyone. Here's hoping they blow you out the sky before y'all hit orbit, right?" _Amara's hands clenched into fists. Judging from the expressions everyone else had they were also hearing Tyreen's voice as well…peachy.

"Amara! Get on the turret in the back! I think they realized we ain' Maliwan!" Zane shouted, and Amara rushed to act; planting herself in the seat on the opposite side of the room. Said seat whirled around and propelled her into a smaller, separate room that actually had a window, and a set of turret guns in clear sight.

In said sight she also saw six other Maliwan dropships. So…that was fun.

Her hands grabbed the controls and, without missing a beat, she open fired at the approaching ships, watching red lasers pepper the closest enemy ship and, in a splash of fire and molten metal, it was destroyed, though this provoked the others to open fire as well, Amara grunting when she felt the ship lurch, no doubt from Zane trying to avoid the enemy fire.

"_Still wish y'all took the deal, Vault Hunters," _Tyreen was still going. _"Wouldn't be like this. But, we figured y'all were pretty dumb from the get-go; you saw a company getting absolutely stopped into the dirt and decided to side with those guys, just like you decided to side with Lilith. Look where that got her." _Amara was growing increasingly frustrated, the Siren taking her anger out on another ship that, in a few seconds, she turned into molten slag as well.

"_Tyreen," _She was confused to hear FL4K respond to the cult bitch. What was that robot's plan? _"If you continue to mock and belittle my friend, I will respond in full." _

"_Ohhhhh, robot's got some balls. Whatcha got, metal man?" _

"_You look like a prostitute who realized she was a failure at selling her body and decided to become a worthless popstar streamer, your brother looks like a failed homoerotic Rockstar who realized too late that he was out of style, and your streams are boring and devoid of original content, to the point where skags can put on a more entertaining show." _Amara was silent, and thankfully, Tyreen was silent, too.

"…_okay, I know I said 'whatcha got' but…like…what the fuck, dude? That one…honestly, that one actually hurt." _

"_Good. Contact us again and I will not hesitate to insult your outfit next."_

"_NO ONE TALKS SHIT 'BOUT MY OUTFIT—" _The line went dead and Amara actually managed to laugh a bit. She didn't know FL4K had such…vigor with words. Her own insults were potent but…she'd have to compare stuff later.

But, for now, she had to make sure they survived to reach such a point. The window view told her they were passing through Promethea's atmosphere. It wouldn't be long now before they reached Sanctuary.

Her eyes narrowed as she watched a few more Maliwan ships pursue them; said ships suffered the same fate as the ones before them as, in moments, she reduced them to bits and pieces as well; the Siren breathing a sigh of relief when she saw no additional ships were heading their way.

"_Hey, Vault Hunter," _She was relieved to hear Lilith's voice. _"FL4K filled me in on what's going on. You four stole a Maliwan ship?" _

"It was mostly Zane's idea."

"_Well, good work regardless. You're coming up on us now. I guess disembark at the airlock and we'll receive you. Might even be able to repurpose that Maliwan ship into an actual drop ship and—"_

"_Nah, let's just keep sendin' 'em in that pod, Lil. I like that pod."_ Amara grimaced when Ellie chimed in.

She'd be damned if she was going in that pod again. It sucked in there. So much.

* * *

"So, we're heading to Athenas?" FL4K stood in the bridge alongside their cohorts and allies, the Beastmaster standing with crossed arms as Lilith nodded. "Why is the key fragment there and not on Promethea where it should be?"

"Safety, I'm guessing." Lilith shrugged. "So no one can open the Vault without a lot of effort. Either way, Athenas is most likely safe."

"And what makes you assume so?"

"The map the COV took doesn't pinpoint the location of keys. It just pinpoints the Vault's location." FL4K let out a low hum at that. So, that meant they were finally a step ahead of the Children of the Vault. Good.

"Are we going to use that jump again?" Moze inquired with a light shudder. "I don't wanna get trapped under some rubble again."

"We will, but once we're fully out of Promethean aerospace. Make sure Maliwan doesn't detect the jump. So, in about an hour, we'll be jumping. You got that long to wind down and prepare—" Zane was already gone. FL4K didn't even see him leave. "Where…where's he—"

"Moxxi's bar," Amara said with a dismissive wave, the Siren turning to leave as well. "Same place I'm heading. Wanna see if she's got anything to eat there." FL4K gave Lilith a nod and turned to leave as well, the Beastmaster watching Moze walk past as, for a moment, a thought crossed their mind. A thought that, for once, wasn't about hunting and murder, but closely related. They were all a pack, and Moze was one of the more distant members of that pack. FL4K wanted to fix that.

"Moze," The Gunner stopped when her name was called, turning to look at the Beastmaster. "Do you wish to go to the shooting range for a moment? I'd like to see your assault rifle's abilities up close."

"O-Oh…sure. Let's get going. Also, I wanna hear where you got those insults from; need to use them on the old man if he gets cheeky." FL4K would have smiled if they could as they sped up to follow with Moze. This was what the humans called bonding; it was a weird concept, but if it improved the bonds of the pack then so be it. A weak pack was a pack that did not survive, and FL4K was going to make sure that didn't happen.

Besides, there was already a weak pack out there; that was the Children of the Vault. It didn't take an expert hunter to know that, inevitably, they would fall apart.

FL4K just wanted to make sure they could claim the trophies after such a collapse. It'd be glorious.

* * *

(I'm impressed with how far this story's come. I started it as an experiment, and I'm amazed that it'd become my highest faved and followed story; so thanks to everyone who's supporting this story. Your encouragement means a lot!

Also, while I have a moment, I should address some concerns from the reviews. While it does feel like Zane and Moze are the central protagonists that's far from the case; I just haven't given time for Amara and FL4K to shine yet. As said before, all four of them are the central protagonists for this story, and thus when chances come, I'll flesh their characters out more based on the game's content and my own interpretations of how they would be.

As for how Legendaries will go, it may be a mixture of what VargasREborn pitched and something else; some will be made from parts from bosses, and sometimes they'd just be weapons said bosses were using or had on them. Gives a neat flow to things.

Anyhow, I'm rambling, so see you all next week, and, once again, thanks for all the support and love for this story!)


	8. Battle for Athenas

Zane took another bite out of his burger as he sat at the bar counter, the Operative letting out a low sigh of peace as he relished and enjoyed his meal. According to what Tannis said they weren't too far from Athenas; give it another few minutes and they'd be on approach to the planet and it'd be time to run about on Athenas to find the Vault Key fragment Rhys spoke about. He hadn't ever been to Athenas in his time, no, but Zane knew a lot about the planet and those who inhabited it. Generally, it was inhabited by a…he wanted to say cult, called the Order of the Impending Storm. Again, Zane had very little information about them.

"Hey, old man, Lilith says it's about time." He turned to see Amara standing in the doorway, the Siren's arms crossed as the Operative finished his meal and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Yeah yeah…and just when I was enjoyin' the downtime."

"You'll have your downtime once we get the fragment. Given the circumstances, it shouldn't be long."

"Oh? What makes ya say that?" Zane grabbed his handgun from the bar counter and tucked it into its holster, the Operative walking alongside Amara as the two of them headed towards the bridge.

"Athenas is so out of the way it'd be damn near impossible for someone to go attack it. And, given the circumstances again, probably no one knows about the fragment there anyhow. So, from what I'm feeling, we'd just drop down there in our stolen Maliwan ship, find Lilith's friend, get the fragment, and return here with time…to…spare." Amara trailed off as they entered the bridge. Looking at the window, Zane could see why.

A small fleet of Maliwan ships were in Athenas' aerospace, just like with Promethea; only difference was it was a smaller fleet, with a single flagship and a few drop ships hovering about it, but that still didn't make the sight any less chilling.

"Maliwan?! How the FUCK did they find Athenas?!" Amara spat.

"_Yoooo, you finally got to Athenas?" _Zane deadpanned when he heard that cunt's voice in his ECHO. He didn't even need to guess that, apparently, they intercepted their ECHO frequencies and learned of the key fragment's location. _"Troy's been tracking your ECHOs for the last few days; should really get better…tch…what's it called, bro?"_

"_Encrypted frequencies; maybe buy a VPN, you jackasses." _

"Tyreen," Zane looked over to FL4K as the Beastmaster had their hand mashed down onto their own ECHO. "Do I need to get the insults."

"_N-No, we're good, dude." _And for once, she sounded afraid. _"Like…the shit from last time's still getting to me."_

"_C'mon, Tyreen, don't let this Vault Thief get you down. He'll be dead anyhow when Maliwan's new guy gets a hold of 'em."_

"Did anyone ask you to speak, you lamprey?"

"_Hold on, what the fuck did you just call me?"_

"I called you a lamprey; a mere festering, wiggling, writhing creature that survives purely on the life essence of something else. If anything, I feel bad for the lamprey, being compared to a creature as lowly and useless as you. It at least fills a role in the food chain."

"_Ooooo, big words from a robot."_

"Big words from someone who looks like they came from a donation pile in a Goodwill. The _free_ pile, I might add." The bridge was completely silent now, with the Calypso twins now miraculously silent. "That's what I thought. Everyone's entitled to bring something to a discussion, Troy, but you should be a good little bitch boy leech and bring silence next time. Else, next time, I'm coming after those hula hoops you call gauges hanging from your head." FL4K ended their transmission and turned their eye to a clearly stunned Lilith. "What? You never said we weren't allowed to insult them back."

"I-I know just…damn. Remind me not to piss you off." She chuckled. "Regardless, it doesn't look like Maliwan deployed a whole fleet to attack Athenas; probably can't spare the man-power, what with how bad their war on Promethea's going."

"That, or they're doubtful the COV's telling the truth," Moze crossed her arms and scowled. "It's hard to buy the words of a buncha murder happy shit nuggets."

"Makes ya wonder how they got Maliwan on their side at all, eh, Mozzy Moze?" Zane grinned as, once again, the Gunner scoffed and rolled her eyes. He legitimately refused to pass up a chance to mess with her. He did turn serious as he looked up at the window once again, clearing his throat. "But, back on track, you mentioned a friend last time; are they as 'amusing' as your mate Rhys?"

"Not in the slightest. Don't worry. She'll contact you when you get groundside, though it seems our primary objective is fending Maliwan off…last thing we want is them getting access to the key fragment." Zane nodded. That'd definitely make their job a shite-load harder.

"Alright, let's hit the ship and—"

"Actually, you might have to use the drop pod, Vault Hunters," Zane froze in mid-stride at Lilith's words. "Something Ellie brought up to me earlier; didn't Maliwan ID the ship as stolen when you four were leaving Promethea?"

"I-I mean, probably? Probably not? Wanna say not." Zane was hasty with his words.

"That's the thing; if they know it's stolen, they'll shoot you down. The pod's your best bet as it'll let you four get planet-side in a far shorter time."

"I noticed you didn't say safer there, also…" Moze chimed, though the Gunner was already begrudgingly walking. On a brighter side, Zane guessed some of his wit was rubbing off onto her…in a good way. Not a weird way. Was it weird? He wanted to say it wasn't. Wasn't weird at all.

Regardless, and with a much slower pace, Zane headed down to the drop pod's location, standing with the others in front of said pod as Ellie stood by, waiting to drop them again.

"How will we be returning to Sanctuary this time if the ship is here and we are planetside?" FL4K asked.

"Eh, easy. I'll just come by in the Maliwan ship and scoop you four up." Zane legitimately needed a moment with that one.

"…then why don' we go in the ship to begin with…?"

"Because my idea's better. Now HOP IN." Zane, for once, was not jovial. He was actually annoyed. Now he knew how Moze felt!

And, like that, he cheered himself up a little.

* * *

Moze was glad she didn't eat anything before getting in the pod. Because, somehow, it was worse than earlier; a feat she didn't even consider possible up until a few minutes ago!

Stumbling out the drop pod and falling to her knees, the Gunner adjusted her helmet and took a few long, shaky breaths, looking at the scenery ahead of her.

For the most part, Athenas was a clear contrast to Promethea. Old buildings, cracked roads, and generally a lower quality feel to things. It reminded her of Pandora a bit, yet…upscale. So, it was between Promethea and Pandora in terms of appeal. A slightly amusing thought, if it weren't for the fact that Maliwan was attacking the planet, and, once again, they had to repel an invading force.

Moments like that made Moze wish she was getting paid to do such a job…but alas.

Still, since she wasn't dead or incapacitated, she had to get moving. Especially because, in the distance, she watched a Maliwan dropship drop down several troops. Troops who were immediately sniped by FL4K; the robot offering her a hand she accepted, feeling the Beastmaster yank her to her feet. "Are you alright, Moze?"

"Y-Yeah. Just a bit winded from the fall. I'll be fine in a few minutes."

"So be it. I cannot afford to lose a packmate. I'll scout ahead and—"

"_Hey, you're the Vault Hunters Lilith talked about, right?" _Moze heard a new voice in her ECHO, one that thankfully sounded friendly for the moment. _"It's about time you showed up; come find me in the market quarter. A battalion of Maliwan troops are trampling my home and I'd like some help getting rid of them…the fun way, for those who want clarification." _She seemed like a treat already.

"Understood," Moze shouldered her Atlas rifle and got moving, letting the others mow down the small squad of enemies as she got her shit together. "And you're Lilith's contact, I'm guessing?"

"_Yep! Her and I go way back; even took down Handsome Jack together, too!" _Handsome Jack…Moze heard a lot about the man, but she never personally met him. She just knew that, a while back, he was the CEO of Hyperion and basically tried to "fix" Pandora…fix being a nice way to say he went genocidal and tried to wipe everyone who wasn't Hyperion out.

She was glad Vladof didn't have him in their crosshairs. She didn't want to square off against their troops, given how advanced they were in terms of arsenal.

"Well, that's good; means you can kick some ass, then."

"_Oh, that's an understatement…um…Lilith never told me you guys' names." _

"Oh, you want my full name or…"

"_Eh, let's go with the full. I get the impression it'll be neat."_

"Moserah Hayussinian Yan-Lun al-Amir Andreyevna." She heard silence from the woman on the other line.

"…_well that's a mouthful."_

"Mom remarried a few times…and culture things. It's a long story. But I go by Moze for short." The Gunner came to a slow stop as she and the others reached the market quarter, the soldiers there already dispatched, courtesy of Amara's abilities. Moze held her head and groaned when FL4K rang a bell set in the back of the quarter, the doors parting as a soldier flew past them.

Moze flinched when said soldier was grasped by strange, astral energy, being lifted and slammed into several more things before he violently…imploded. Not exploded; IMPLODED.

"Well, took you all long enough." And, standing before said gates, was the one they came for. The blue haired woman standing there, clearly, was a Siren; evident by her tattoos and the fact she decimated an entire Maliwan battalion on her own. "C'mon, let's get a move on. Sooner we get rid of these Maliwan fucks the sooner I can go back to running the Order." Moze reloaded her rifle and followed with the group as they walked along with the adept Siren, the Gunner speeding up a bit so she could walk side by side with Maya.

"So, you and your band of Vault Hunters took on Hyperion, right?" Maya nodded. "Was it difficult?"

"Not really. My group and I didn't fight them _a lot_; it was mostly just bandits who were either too stupid to band together or were paid off by Hyperion. But, given the circumstances, I'd take them over these Children of the Vault guys." Moze raised a brow.

"You know about them?" Maya nodded.

"Lilith and I kept in touch following my departure from Pandora. She, naturally, informed me about the COV and how large they were getting. At the time, I didn't really fret over them because they were only on Pandora and had no way off it…buuuuuuut…" She sighed, a pained expression on her face. Moze knew why.

"We'll get Lilith's powers back from Tyreen, Maya. Don't worry 'bout that. We may not be as…plentiful as your team of Vault Hunters, but we got some tricks up our sleeves that'll—"

"Attention, stupid pacifist monks," A blaring, foghorn of a voice shouted in Moze's ECHO, causing her to visibly flinch. A Maliwan dropship flew by overhead, the Gunner getting the impression it was the source of the grating transmission that was sodomizing her ears. "This is Oppressor Traunt; it's not just a title, though. Oppression is my PROFESSION!" She hated the speaker's guts already. "Athenas is now property of the Maliwan Corporation effective immediately; that means NO TRESSPASSING! Anyone found to be trespassing CAN and WILL be shot by our guns…'cause orders. And cause it's cool. And maybe a little funny. Just a little bit, though."

She really hated his guts now.

"Ugh," Maya groaned. "That's Traunt. Real pain in my ass. He's the guy they sent to 'oversee' this attack and, so far, has been pretty shitty at it. He hasn't been able to get into the anchorhold but…let's not rely on his stupidity. Even idiots can get things done if they ram their heads against a wall long enough."

"Takes a lotta idiots, though. And ya never know which'll give out first; the wall or their skulls. Usually depends on who's chuckin' 'em." Zane chimed in. The group reached what was once a town square but, like with most places they visited, it was crawling with enemy soldiers.

"Now, look, monks, I know you think I'm doing this 'cause I enjoy terrorizing you, but it's actually to make my big brother proud of me!" And he was still going. "He's a big shot general, you see, and cause of that I got a HUGE inferiority complex. It's actually a really big issue I shouldn't be discussing like this but…eh…you'll all probably be dead in the next…tch…wanna say twelve minutes. Thirteen maybe. Wanna say thirteen. Hard maybe."

"Does he just like the sound of his own voice?" Amara asked, to which Maya shrugged.

"Hell if I know. Just work on clearing the square, Vault Hunters. Once it's safe, we can ring the peace bell and the other monks'll let us through." Moze…just turned to look at her.

"Wait, why aren't they fighting, then?"

"They ALL apparently took a vow of non-violence. It's why we have a severe ratch infestation. Because no one wants to break their vow and get the pesticide." Moze grimaced.

"Like…how severe are we talking?"

"Let's just say a friend of mine wants to hunt one he called the Chupracabratch. It's gotten large and fierce enough to actually become a full apex predator..."

Moze made a firm note to take care of that infestation with the best pest control of them all; FIRE.

* * *

"Huh, wish you four were here when the invasion first started. Might've held our own and got rid of these fucks earlier." Amara grinned at Maya's praise; the Siren twisting the neck of a Maliwan soldier as FL4K's jabber rode on the back of one of their mechanical Frontrunners…she wasn't going to ask why the robot's ape had a gun. "Unfortunately, here we are…and I'm gonna need a little more help."

"Well, lay it on us," Zane reloaded his fancy SMG. "Can't be worse than the small army we just massacred."

"Depends, how do you feel about grave robbing?"

"Robbing a human grave is on my bucket list," FL4K spoke up. Amara just turned towards the robot who, eerily, held a Maliwan soldier's head, affixing it to their belt like a demented ornament. "Humans bury their dead with so many treasures and trinkets. It's a waste."

"…riiiiight." Maya cleared her throat. "Well, there's some Eridium hidden in the cemetery. And if my hunch is right, my apprentice is already there. We'll need that Eridium to get into the anchorhold ourselves."

"Apprentice?" Amara questioned.

"A girl I found a while back who I've taken under my wing. She's damn near impossible to keep in one place, yet she always seems to find herself there. So, she'll be able to help you out."

"Right, we'll get on that, then." Moze cocked her shotgun and got walking. "Anything we should know about her? Identifying features?" Maya just…cringed slightly.

"…you'll know her when you see her." Amara was…concerned by that, but she got moving regardless with the others, mowing through Maliwan troops and ratches alike.

…Maya was right. The infestation _was_ severe…

It didn't take long to reach the graveyard itself, and…well Amara was caught off guard. Namely because there were many dead Maliwan soldiers scattered in front of the gates and…a teenager rifling through their pockets and armor, stealing whatever she could fit into her pockets. She only stopped when she looked up and saw they were watching.

"O-Oh, hey! Don't mind me! Just…out here, looting corpses…nothing weird." Amara found it to be very weird. "Wait, you guys are Vault Hunters, right?! L-Like what Maya used to be?!" Least now Amara saw what Maya meant; this was definitely her apprentice.

"Um…yeah, we are—"

"WHOA! That's so freakin' COOL!" Moze was cut off by the teen's giddy ranting. "D-Do you travel the galaxy? Fight bad guys? BLOW SHIT UP?!"

"Heh, we do all that and then some, little one." Amara knew how to handle fans. Better than her peers, at least. "I'll give you an autograph when this is all over, even, but right now, we need to get into this graveyard and find some Eridium for your mentor so we can get into the archorhold."

"O-Oh, right! I know just the grave, too! N-Not cause I've been snooping around here before…please don't tell Maya; I don't want dish duty again…"

"I won't. Now, let's get moving." Amara could tell the others were…skeptical towards Ava; at least with Zane and Moze, whereas FL4K was as expressionless as always. But the Siren didn't mind her; she was young, impressionable, and with the right encouragement, she could do—

"_Hey, Vault Hunters, have you met up with Ava?" _Maya's voice brought Amara from her thoughts, the Siren motioning for her cohorts to follow Ava as she mashed a finger onto her ECHO.

"We have. She's…eccentric, to say the least."

"_Yep, that's Ava. Wants to be a Vault Hunter herself one day, but hopefully she kicks that dream."_

"Why? It's not a bad dream."

"_Oh, it's not; make no mistake. It's just…very dangerous. And it usually makes you a LOT of enemies. Like entire corporations, like with me and Hyperion and now Maliwan. I just don't want her to go through the same shit we did. Lose the same people and suffer through the same atrocities. And I especially don't want her to die out there; Hyperion stopped making New-U stations a long time ago; if anyone bites it out there, it's for good." _

"Sometimes that's for the best. Suffering and going through shit builds character and conviction; makes you grow into something better. It's one of the reasons I became a Vault Hunter myself; even a tiger can learn a few new tricks."

"_Heh, fair enough…just don't let Ava hug you. And, if you do, check your pockets. She tends to randomly steal things from people…it's…how we first met." _Amara deadpanned. Namely because she watched Ava hug Moze ahead of her.

"…Moze, check your pockets. Don't ask why, just do it."

* * *

They had the Eridium, and now it was time to supply Maya with it and let her do as she needed.

FL4K walked with the others, Meat-Thief close by, as the Beastmaster took out another Maliwan troop as the group fought their way to the courtyard. The adept Siren's apprentice, sadly, had to be sent off; FL4K didn't dislike the teenager, but she could be…grating, especially when she asked about how they saw.

…FL4K didn't like getting into that. It was always a bitch to explain.

That annoyance was worsened by the frequent ECHO transmissions from the Maliwan soldier called Traunt; increasingly growing more frustrated with the team's slaughter of his troops and cohorts. Honestly, FL4K didn't care. They were all generally unworthy prey. Mere fools who donned themselves in powerful equipment and held no knowledge of said how to wield said equipment. Silver lining, the one called Traunt could prove to be worthy…even though FL4K had their doubts.

The Beastmaster grunted in annoyance when they felt their sniper run dry on clips. Setting the weapon onto their back, FL4K opted to instead switch to their SMG as they pushed ahead, slaughtering and slaying more Maliwan soldiers as, at last, they reached the courtyard; having to drop through a hatch to get there.

"TRAAAAAUUUUUUNNNNNT!" Something slammed down ahead of the group. The dust settled and the Beastmaster saw what looked like a Maliwan heavy soldier, but this one wore far more advanced armor and wielded a flamethrower on one arm and a cryo launcher on the other, even going so far as to spew them both and strike a pose in the same instant.

…FL4K went ahead and assumed this was Traunt. They were disappointed.

"Welp, I didn't want it to come to this," The fool shouted. "But y'all forced my hand…heh…always wanted to say that…anyways, EAT FIRE AND ICE, BITCHES!" Both torrents were spewed at the group, Zane stepping forward and putting up his defensive barrier to stop the dual assault. FL4K open fired with their SMG, noticing immediately that Maliwan soldiers were flooding the area. Amara was already after them, astral fists at the ready as Moze mowed down any other soldiers she could with her Iron Bear.

"Oi, Tin man," They looked down at Zane. "Got somethin' for fancy pants over there? Can only maintain this shield for a few more seconds."

"I have something. Set your clone somewhere so you can safely teleport. I'll handle this fool." Zane raised a brow but complied regardless, hurling his hard light clone out switching spots with it, the Beastmaster looking down to Meat-Thief and nodding to the jabber.

"Ready, boy?" Crackling energy surged across FL4K's hand as they pointed towards Traunt, the jabber fading away in a blur of yellow energy and reappearing next to the fool, now greatly enlarged. The jabber beat his fists onto his chest and swung his hands, grabbing onto Traunt's flamethrower and cyro launcher as the two clashed. Using the chance provided, the Beastmaster sprinted for the captain and threw his weight into the man's side, hearing him cry out as he was forced onto his side, FL4K emptying an entire clip onto his cryo launcher and, after draining his shields, successfully destroyed it.

"GRRR! THAT DOES IT!" FL4K leapt back as, quickly, Traunt rose and flung Meat-Thief back, the jabber regressing to his normal size as Traunt leveled his remaining weapon at the Beastmaster. "BURN YOU FUCKER!" FL4K acted without hesitation, turning and shielding the jabber with their own body as the flames came. Pain exploded across the robot's back when their shields were depleted, a sharp groan leaving them as they persevered, protecting the jabber from the fire. The pain got to the point where FL4K had to silence their pain sensors, else they'd fold and falter. They felt the fire cease and FL4K rose, the Beastmaster's jacket falling to the ground in cinders as they stared down Traunt.

"Wha…you're a fuckin' robot?!"

"I'm more than a robot." Their blade was in one hand, and SMG in the other. Traunt suddenly flinched from a shot to his helmet, providing FL4K the opportunity as the Beastmaster sprinted towards the captain, throwing their weight into the man's side again and sending him to the ground. "I'm the galaxy's greatest hunter, bringer of death's grace, and destroyer of foes. But, right now," Traunt's shields were gone. FL4K slammed their blade into the captain's helmet over and over again until it finally gave away enough to expose bits and pieces of the man's head. "I'm the one who's going to kill you." And they open fired, hearing Traunt shout and cry out before, finally, going limp. The fight was a quick one, but in this case, that was good. Stepping off the dead captain, FL4K reactivated their pain sensors and holstered their SMG and blade. The Maliwan troops who survived were fleeing now; perhaps the death of their captain spurred them to flee, or they saw they were beyond outmatched. For the time, FL4K didn't care. They did what they came to do.

"Oi, FL4K, ya okay, tin man?" They looked over to Zane.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"It's just…yar coat's on fire over there and…y'know…you're kinda…creepy without it. Like...I thought ya were all big and bulky but now? Kinda...scrawny." FL4K looked at the severely damaged coat on the ground and walked over to it, picking it up and examining it. It was burned, yes, but it could easily be mended with some additional cloth, leather, and some sewing.

"Where's Maya?"

"Right here," She dropped down from an overlook above the courtyard, many of the monks joining her, including her apprentice. "Good work, all of you. Now, let me get that Eridium so I can get us into the anchorhold. And then we'll get that fragment back to Lilith."

FL4K was looking forward to that. The sooner it was done, the sooner they could go back to Sanctuary and ask Ellie to repair them.

…did that count as second base, though…she'd technically be inside of them...in a sense?

* * *

(I'm finally falling into a good rhythm with this story idea. It's not perfect, but it's good; enough for me to ensure I have time to deliver good chapters each Thursday. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter that, near the end, got sort of non-canon. I felt that scene would help 'cause FL4K needed more moments to shine, both in conviction, and action. And no, we're not done with Athenas yet; as someone pointed out, there's still a few things that need to be handled. So, we'll get into those in the next chapter or so. And then we can move on to harsher and harder topics in the story.

…a topic everyone's expecting. One that involves us losing someone.

Until then, thanks for reading, and happy Halloween!)


	9. Tying up Loose Ends

"So, Lil, what's on the menu for today?" Standing in the bridge without his fellow Vault Hunters for once, Zane took a healthy swig from a bottle of rum and let out a silent belch, rubbing his mouth with the back of his hand. The vault key fragment was given to Tannis for safe keeping and, apparently, Maya and her apprentice decided to tag along…even though the Operative found it pretty fucking irresponsible to bring a kid aboard a ship that'd see constant war and chaos.

And if _he_ found it irresponsible, it was reaaaaaaaaaally fucking irresponsible.

"Well," Lilith looked out the window to the vacuum of space. "Honestly, not much."

"Not much?" She nodded.

"After you all wasted Traunt and secured the key, Maliwan pulled out of Athenas. Guess the loss of their captain sent them running with their tail tucked between their legs." Zane found that fair; he knew Maliwan and knew that if someone managed to waste their commandeering officer for an assault they were to pull out and evacuate immediately.

And yet they were completely fine with hurling legions of soldiers at someone. Maliwan was fucking retarded.

Zane refocused. "So, we're just idle now?"

"Somewhat. Ellie's trying to use some parts from some destroyed Maliwan ships to upgrade and augment Sanctuary. Maybe even outfit us with some cloaking technology so we can safely collect you four from planets directly." Zane liked the sound of that.

"So, 'til then, we just stick 'round here?"

"Actually," Zane turned to see Maya step in, the adept Siren flipping through her book with every step. "There IS something you could handle down on Athenas. Something that's long overdue."

"Oh yeah? Lay it on me."

"The distillery's overrun with ratches. I'll keep it brief and—wait where are you going?" Zane was already sprinting and rapidly loading his handgun as he went, a huge grin on his face as a vaulted over the railing and headed for the drop ship. Distillery meant wine and wine meant booze. He didn't know what sort of shite the monks could make but he was willing to try any beer once.

Besides, people isolated in the weirdest areas tended to make the best liquors. Like hillbillies and moonshine.

…moonshine went well with apples.

* * *

"Okay, no." Moze deadpanned, ducking back down to work on Iron Bear's detached arm. The Gunner was hard at work in her room, trying to improve Iron Bear's mechanics and functions, something long overdue due to how hectic things had been for the last few days. Because of that, she wasn't all too keen on rushing down to Athenas once again, especially with Zane and _especially _to clear out an ungodly ratch infestation.

"But c'mon, Mozzy Moze! Buncha free booze down there! I bet these fuckers make a killer moonshine! And all we gotta do is melt some ratch hives down there. Nothin' we ain' used to." She groaned.

"The answer's still no. With the downtime I got, I need to repair Iron Bear. Damn thing's taken a metric FUCK TON of damage lately, especially when you or Amara get in the turret on the back. And, besides, I'm adding some upgrades I found from dead Maliwan guys. May finally be able to implement that railgun." It WOULD take an iota more power to utilize, but a railgun was something Moze always envisioned Iron Bear having…well…that and jetpacks. Everything went better with jetpacks.

"Ugh, fine…gonna see if Amara's around." The old man stepped out of her room and Moze ducked back down to work on the detached turret arm, grumbling to herself as she worked.

Footsteps caught her attention. The Gunner popped back up and was caught off guard to see it was FL4K. "You need something, FL4K?"

"Somewhat. Someone named Hammerlock has informed me there's a giant, apex predator ratch down there he has named the Chupracabratch. I had planned to hunt it myself in our down time but I wanted to see if you would like to be a part of this."

"…why?" That just sounded fucking nuts.

"Bonding exercise. A pack needs to stay strong together, and from what I've documented you and I have the least cohesion in the pack. This will be a good way to remedy that." Moze sighed. On one hand, she could opt to simply work on her weapon in peace and use her downtime to the best of her ability…but on the other hand, melting a giant ratch with her Maliwan SMG sounded enticing. And, also, it beat having to clear out several hives of the pests.

"Sure, I'll come with you," She stepped away from her work and brushed herself off. "But if it gets weird…"

"It won't. I already listed all possible outcomes in my processing system. The worst possible outcome is simply it managing to hurt one of us." Moze just…stared.

"Wait, that's it?"

"It's a ratch, Moze. As large as it is, it's still going to behave like a ratch, and be a dumb, dour creature."

"Well, that's good. Means this shouldn't be hard."

"Of course. Unless the WORST possible outcome unfolds and it manages to eat you, but my calculations pointed that as well below zero…so it's possible, but extremely unlikely, given the circumstances."

Moze was rethinking her plan, but unfortunately she had already said yes.

…maybe she should have gone with Zane after all…even if she hated his guts, still…

* * *

"And there's another one!" Amara grimaced as Zane blew apart another ratch nest, the Siren covering her nose as the smell wafted over to her. The Operative was either doing a good job at not showing it bothered him or he actually liked the scent. She didn't know.

Besides, her mind really wasn't into the ratch hunting thing, anyhow. She was focused on other things.

"Oi, Amara, what's up with ya?" She perked up when the old man asked the question she had been slightly dreading.

"Nothing. I'm good."

"Best not to lie, 'Mara. C'mon, ya can tell me. I already got twenty secrets to take to the grave with me." She sighed and shook her head.

"It's Maya."

"What? Don' like her being aboard the ship?"

"Not in the slightest…just…feels weird being around another Siren. One with powers." She meant Lilith no offense but…yeah.

"I mean, yeah, I can see the weirdness a tad. Is it a bad weird or a good weird?"

"…a bad one." She sighed. "It's…hard to word, honestly…"

"She reminds ya of what ya could become, yet at the same time, ya've been tryin' to distance yourself from your Siren powers and make a name for yarself without them?" Amara…just fucking stared at Zane.

"How did you…?"

"Mara, I've been doin' this for a long time. I learned how to pick up things easy. Every time ya think I ain' listenin', I am. I just make a show of not showin' it."

"…and?"

"Ya already made a name without yar powers; they just help boost ya." And with that, he kept walking, leaving Amara to ponder what he said. Honestly, he was right; she got her Siren abilities when she was a teenager, and long before that she was kicking ass and taking names…they just manifested when she was close to dying after a bad run with some gangsters.

She looked down at her arm, holstering her shotgun so she could run her fingers along her tattoos, a slight grin coming to her lips. The powers didn't make her. _She_ made them. So, maybe she'd see Maya for some training when she got back, see where that led.

She also made a note to find some alcohol to thank Zane with. The old fucker managed to surprise her yet again.

* * *

FL4K loaded another shot into their sniper as they walked, their spiderant in tow as, behind the beast, Moze unloaded on yet another ratch. Maliwan, largely, had vacated Athenas aside from small pockets of soldiers either unable to escape or too determined to evacuate.

The Beastmaster had to appreciate such boldness, but it was unfortunately misplaced. They'd die all the same.

"How long 'til we get…wherever we're going, FL4K?" Moze asked. The Beastmaster came to a stop and pointed up towards a rocky peak straight ahead.

"Here. From what this 'Hammerlock' said, the Chupracabratch makes its nest in this domain. A foul and fierce creature, the reports I scoured said it fed on monks and Maliwan troopers alike, so naturally, it's either formidable, or the humans were weak."

"Let's just say it's the former so I don't get annoyed." She grunted. FL4K nodded and ascended the peak, rifle in hand as, sure enough, they saw the fabled beast in question.

The Chupracabratch, hence the name, was an oversized ratch beast, currently hunched over and feeding on what appeared to be a Maliwan heavy trooper. The fool must not have seen the beast coming or, more amusingly, perhaps thought he was a match for it. Nature proved him quite wrong.

Regardless, that was their prey, and FL4K needed its head…and perhaps a mandible or two for Hammerlock so they could get paid.

"Moze," FL4K toned their voice down so they wouldn't alert the creature. "Is your Iron Bear ready?"

"Um…no? I was working on it before you called me down here; if I call it now, it's gonna come missing an arm or two." FL4K wished they could grimace, but it was fine. This was going to work.

"Do you know how to utilize a sniper?"

"Um…sorta?" FL4K tossed the Gunner their rifle, Moze barely catching it and looking over the archaic weapon.

"Keep your torso pressed against the stock, use a rock if you must as a shooting post to further control the recoil. Once you fire, pull the bolt back to load in another bullet. Try not to hit me."

"O…kay, but what are you doing?"

"Something simple." FL4K's blade was drawn and a shrill whistle left their speakers, causing their spiderant to sprint full speed at the Chupracabratch. The beast looked up just in time for FL4K to clench their hand, engulfing Broodless in radioactive energy as she enlarged to an equal size, the enlarged spiderant slamming her drill arm into the monster's side to send it over with a squeal. Leaping off a rock, FL4K plunged their blade down into the Chupracabratch's side, splattering vile blood everywhere as they repeatedly plunged their blade in and out of the creature's side, though they were flung back moments later when the enlarged ratch managed to right itself and fling away Broodless.

_**CRACK**_

The Chupracabratch reeled from a sudden sniper shot to the head, one of its beady eyes blown out as the beast writhed in pain. FL4K turned towards Moze, the Gunner slowly yanking the bolt back and loading another bullet, firing another, and another, and another. The Chupracabratch wasn't doing so well, yet the beast had enough fight in it to sprint towards her, causing Moze to panic and backpedal.

However, it didn't reach its destination. Namely because FL4K grabbed its leg and held it back long enough for Broodless to slam into it once more, the spiderant reduced to her usual size yet still with the same fight as before. Her maw dug into the Chupracabratch's neck, drawing copious blood, yet the beast still seemed to have some, albeit lingering, fight left in it.

Good. FL4K wanted a real fight for once.

As their pet kept the oversized ratch in place, they released the leg and redrew their blade, sliding underneath the Chupracabratch and stabbed upwards, wrenching their blade deep as, with brutal efficiency, cleaved a large gash right across the monster's gut, causing its entrails and other things to ooze from the wound. This, combined with the other damages the Chupracabratch sustained, caused it to fall to the ground, trying in earnest to get up and continue fighting, but FL4K allowed it no chance.

"Death calls to you, Chupracabratch," Their blade plunged into the ratch's head one final time, and with all the strength their servos allowed, they ripped the Chupracabratch's head clean from its torso, holding it high. "Don't keep her waiting."

"…well…that was…huh." They turned to see Moze approaching, reloading the sniper rifle to the best of her ability, holding her nose and frowning. "Smells like rancid shit, though…"

"A benefit I gain by not having a nose. Regardless," FL4K ripped the dead ratch's mandible from its head, stuffing it into their coat pocket. They'd give the head to Hammerlock; considering they didn't have their embalming and taxidermy supplies in surplus they'd have to stick to smaller trophies. "We have what we came for. Are Zane and Amara still planetside?"

"_Sure are," _The Operative spoke into their ECHO. _"Ready to leave, tin man?" _

"We are. Let's return to Sanctuary, and hopefully, return to Promethea to look for the next two key fragments. I just hope that the Children of the Vault haven't found them first."

"_I doubt it," _Amara spoke now. _"If they did, that bitch Tyreen wouldn't let us hear the end of it, but so far, the frequencies have been quiet." _FL4K had a hunch they knew why the supposed god-queen and her brother were being silent.

It was for their own good. They picked up a few more insults for them. And they wouldn't hesitate to verbally abuse them again if they dared to speak up.

* * *

(I'm still greatly impressed by how much traction this story's garnering. With almost a hundred favs and a little over a hundred follows, this is honestly my most successful story on this site. So, that's good. As said in the past, I do plan to include more non-canonical chapters in this story, but they will come when the chance arises; the next chapter itself being one of said chapters as it handles a specific side-quest most sorta didn't care for but, eh, it's a good chance for me to include some character development.

So, til then, thanks for reading, and have a great week!

PS: I lost track of time and uploaded this chapter quite late...and this was a bit of character development for Amara.)


	10. Stolen Secrets

Their fingers slowly turned the page in their book as they slouched back in their chair. Mr. Chew was curled up at their feet, Broodless asleep in her makeshift den, and Meat-Thief eagerly played with a, hopefully, unloaded gun. Based on what Lilith told them, Sanctuary was returning to Promethea at a languid pace instead of using the hyper-space jump system Ellie instilled; she wanted to make sure they avoided detection and the new upgrades didn't take any damage from the jump.

FL4K was fine with that. It meant more time for them to catch up on their reading. Sure, they _thrived _on hunting but, sometimes, they liked to settle down with a good book and enjoy their downtime.

_**Knock knock **_

Their head perked up from the timid, feeble knock at their door. A nod to Meat-Thief sent the jabber to the door to open it, FL4K moderately surprised to see Ava was there; the…impressionable young girl seeming distressed for the moment.

"Um, h-hey, FL4K, you got a moment?" The way she spoke, it told them something was amiss, yet she was going through lengths to keep her voice down to not alert others. It already sounded concerning.

"I have approximately four moments. What do you need."

"Oh, n-n-nothin'…just…augh…I need your help." FL4K lowered the book into their lap.

"Go on…"

"J-J-Just, don't tell the others, but…I…left some stuff behind on Athenas; _important_ stuff. Stuff I can't go back and get myself 'cause Maya'll just ask a lotta questions."

"So, you wish for me to return instead and retrieve these items for you?" She nodded. They muted their speakers for a second to sigh, then unmuted them. "What are they? I can head down there now before we're too far from Athenas' aerospace."

"I-I'll shoot you a list through your ECHO, 'kay, I just don't want anyone hearing it." That was a red flag. Unfortunately, FL4K couldn't ask further as the teenager was already gone, leaving the Beastmaster to sigh and walk to the weapon's wall, retrieving the sniper and pulling the bolt back.

"Meat-Thief," The jabber whooped in response. "Alert Moze I need her assistance. I need someone to fly the dropship so I can safely be recalled, hopefully with the child's lost items and gear." This was going to be a…weird hunt, but FL4K was going to do it anyhow. They didn't like Ava very much, because she was annoying sometimes, but they didn't want to hurt the teenager's feelings…teenagers did that on their own well enough, comically.

…wait, that was less comic and more depressing…they needed to check their comedy sensor.

* * *

"_FL4K_, _are you sure this is a good idea?" _Moze's voice buzzed through their ECHO as they walked along the stone path of Athenas, SMG in hand. The repurposed Maliwan dropship was hanging overhead as the Gunner did her best to pilot it; FL4K knew she wasn't as…adept with it as Zane was, but she was doing the best she could. _"Lilith might not be too happy with you coming back to Athenas on your own." _

"It's fine. From what I saw during out entry to the planet, there's still a considerable Maliwan presence on Athenas; I can just tell her I was there cleaning up the trash before we left as a plausible excuse. For now, though, maintain concealment until it's time for the pick-up; I'm afraid putting that ship in auto-pilot could lead to it returning to a Maliwan fleet."

"_Yeaaaaah…need to talk to Ellie about seeing if she can do something about that…" _With the help of Mr. Chew the Beastmaster was able to recover a number of goods that, for the most part, belonged to Ava…including a pretty sweet gaming system. Very nice. The whole search took less than a few minutes, making FL4K question why she was so...sketchy earlier while asking.

"Ava," They mashed a hand onto their ECHO, contacting the teenager. "I've recovered the left-behind items and I can return to Sanctuary in a few—"

"_D-Did you check behind a rock outside? There's…something else there. Something REALLY important." _FL4K would have raised a brow if they could but regardless they stepped back outside and searched around. Curiously, they found a hollowed out rock behind one of the buildings, one the Beastmaster opened up…and found nothing within.

"Ava, there's nothing here."

"_WHAT?! WH-WHO COULD HAVE—"_

"_Hey, guys, check it out, I found some girl's diary!" _FL4K intercepted a transmission from a Maliwan soldier. _"Whoa! This girl's messed UP!"_

"_FUCK! NO! G-G-Go find him, please! That's private information! PRIVATE!" _FL4K let out a metallic sigh and whistled over Mr. Chew.

"Moze, you may want to land the dropship somewhere. This may take far longer than I originally speculated." FL4K didn't even see what the big deal was…then again, humans tended to be very sensitive about their information and their emotions.

…granted, FL4K exploited said emotions to hunt them better, but that was besides the point.

* * *

FL4K was both concerned yet impressed the Maliwan soldier was still reading from Ava's diary. The Beastmaster had gunned down a considerable number of Maliwan soldiers en route to the cemetery, the fool's supposed location, and he was still going, reading literally everything and mocking it as well. At first, it was annoying, but now it was depressing, both because his only joy came from insulting a teenage girl…and also the stuff Ava had written as well. It was pure _cringe_.

Speaking of cringe, FL4K could almost hear Ava dying a little on the inside each time the Maliwan soldier read from it. No doubt anyone with a half decent ECHO device could pick up the transmission, so that left the likelihood of anyone and everyone being capable of hearing her "darkest thoughts". The Beastmaster didn't plan to use that against her, but then again, they rarely concerned themselves with human emotions.

Regardless, FL4K reloaded their sniper upon arriving to the cemetery, seeing said Maliwan soldier sitting on a gravestone, laughing to himself as, in his hands, was the diary in question. The fool didn't even notice FL4K as they walked up behind the man, drew their handgun, and open fired at the back of his head. The first two shots ripped his shield apart, and the rest of the bullets embedded themselves deep into the back of the human's head. He fell to the ground, limp and unresponsive, FL4K kneeling to collect the fallen diary, stuffing it into their coat and mashing their finger down onto their ECHO. "Ava, I have the diary."

"_And is that—"_

"The Maliwan soldier's dead. Trophy ruined, but he's dead."

"_Sure…augh…sure. Doesn't really matter though, 'cause everyone on Sanctuary's probably heard him by now. And anyone beyond…and…ugh! That FUCKER!" _She was absolutely livid. Despite their limited understand on the emotional spectrum, FL4K could at least understand her fury. Secrets were quite precious, especially those that could earn one a lot of scorn. Still, with the task complete, they switched frequencies and dialed up Moze so they could return to Sanctuary.

Yet, even as FL4K headed back for the evac zone, they felt…melancholy. Melancholy over Ava's plight. It wasn't their problem, no, but at the same time, they felt they had to make it up to her somehow and help the troubled teenager.

Maybe there was something on the about consoling teenagers. Perhaps some encouraging words from her "idols" would help her.

* * *

"And that's the last of them." FL4K set the game console down in Ava's small, yet comfortable room, the Beastmaster stepping back and brushing their hands off. All the items the teenager asked them to recover was brought back and set accordingly, and thus, the hunt was complete.

"Yeah, thanks." She still sounded dejected over the diary issue. Thankfully, now, FL4K had something.

"Ava, I would like to impart some wisdom onto you." She perked up from her bed, looking up at them.

"Huh? What is it?" FL4K stooped down to where they were eye-level, the Beastmaster cycling through the knowledge and data they looked up to find the right words.

"No one cares." Her face fell. "Regarding your diary issue. No one cares. No one cares how cringy it was. No one cares how bad it was. No one beyond this ship cares about you."

"That…isn't helping."

"It is; you fret and panic over people hearing the diary issue and judging you harshly about it, but the truth is no one beyond Sanctuary even cares about such a thing and, those who do, will probably forget about it among countless other things humans forget daily. Those who commit this to memory and seek to mock you are those with so many of their own problems they seek only to use you as an escape." Ava slowly nodded, hugging herself a bit.

"I…guess. It was so damn cringy, though."

"You cringing about it now means you've grown. It means you can look back on the past and realize you've evolved and improved far beyond where you were when you put pen to paper. And, naturally, you'll look back on this moment as well and perhaps do the same. So, cringe is good…sometimes. A little bit." She smirked.

"Yeah, you're right…thanks, FL4K."

"Welcome. Now, I must go. We're soon to reach Promethea, and when we arrive, it's back to the hunt."

"Heh, have fun, I guess, and I appreciate this." FL4K nodded and stood, the Beastmaster walking out the small room and back down the metal hall so they could resume their upkeep.

"_Huh, didn't know the tinman had a heart of gold. How funny," _And to ruin the moment, they heard Tyreen in their ECHO. _"Gotta say, that kid's diary was a fun listen. It was so cringy!"_

"Your memory's quite shoddy, isn't it? You don't recall what I threatened?"

"_No no, I remember. And I gotta say, don' give a shit—"_

"That explains why your life is more of regret management rather than actual merit and fulfillment. But, before I get into the usual, I have a question for you, false god."

"_Ha, what is it, robot?"_

"Do you forgive nature for what it did to you? For gifting you with such a hideous, repulsive form?"

"…_okay, fuck you for that one."_

"No thank you; I'd contract an illness from you, and I'm inorganic." They severed the frequency and kept walking. The false god never learned, and of course, FL4K would continue to belittle and abuse her and her brother until they either got the message or were slain.

Ironically, she could learn a thing or two from what they said, if she lived long enough to look back on things and cringe at her whole streaming thing.

* * *

(So, this chapter was an odder one. It's a bit non-canon but, at the same time, it's also a rendition of a side-quest on Athenas and a chance for me to do something unorthodox, mostly because I haven't been playing this game as much as I used to and also because, as shocking as it is, I wanted to do something with Ava.

Yes, Ava sucks. She sucks ass as a character. So, I decided, instead of just pretending she doesn't exist like, honestly, I was tempted to do, it'd be better to revamp and improve her character. To make her likable and give viable reasons for her behavior in things such as teen rashness, because not every teenager is a rational person. So, to essentially fix her character. It won't be easy, and it may irk some people, but it's what works. A novelization improves on what already exists, in my opinion, and so that's what I plan to do now.

So, here's hoping this works out. Thanks for reading, and the coming chapters can and will be more impressive than this one. This one was just to tie up a loose end.)


	11. Welcome to the Skywell!

"Huh, so ya helped the kid with her diary?" Zane sat in the bar, FL4K nodding after concluding their solo adventure down to Athenas. "Weird…wonder why she didn' come to me. I'm good at findin' secrets 'fore someone else does. Part of me job 'n all."

"I'm unsure, but it may have something to do with the fact that, out of the four of us, Ava seems privier to Amara, then me, then Moze, and lastly, you. Amara must have been unable to do it, and thus she went to me." Zane deadpanned.

"How the fuck am I the least favorite?"

"Again, I'm unsure." The Operative sighed. He wasn't gonna take it personally; least she didn't ask FL4K to go alone and raid a liquor store or some shite. Then he'd be pissed.

"Augh, it's fine," He took a long swig from his tequila, setting his shot glass down. "What ain' is we're about to be back in Promethea's aerospace again; gotta find the next two Vault Key fragments 'fore those Calypso fuckwits find 'em."

"Agreed. Us finding them first would even invite the possibility of using them as bait to lure them into a trap, and then I can safely and pleasantly plant a round in Tyreen's head. Several times. Her scalp would serve as an amusing trophy…or a quick meal for Meat-Thief." Zane…just nodded at that. Honestly, FL4K's mindset concerned him sometimes.

"_Hey, Vault Hunters,"_ Lilith's voice chirped from his earpiece, Zane reaching up to mash his finger against it. _"Come to the bridge, we got a situation." _Pushing himself to his feet, Zane grabbed his SMG and got moving, setting it onto his lower back as, of course, he was the first one there, wincing when he saw the holographic image of Rhys hovering in the bridge, with that same, annoying mustache.

"Oh hey," He said, sounding reasonably more panicked than last time. "W-We got a situation. I was just informing Lilith here 'bout it and…tch…gonna have to cash in that alliance card."

"What, did you lose your caviar or something?" Zane just…stared at Moze for that, the Gunner shrugging. "What? Can't I joke?"

"N-No it was a good joke but…eh…how can I put this delicately…" Rhys cleared his throat. "Maliwan's CEO, Katagawa, has an asteroid mounted LASER aimed at Atlas HQ. And, if I don't surrender, he's gonna SLICE ME IN HALF!" Moze just…seemed to process that.

"…alright, that's bad. Really fucking bad. Why the fuck does Maliwan have an asteroid laser?"

"Beats me, but, like I said, LASER…oh! And Zer0 reported the laser's being powered by a Vault Key Fragment so…everyone wins if you destroy it, yay…" He sounded both terrified, yet dejected. It was a combination Zane never thought he'd have to hear in his lifetime, because it sounded so depressing.

"All I needed to hear. Vault Hunters, take ten to prepare, then get down there to give him a hand. This one's gonna be harder, but I'm sure you four'll pull it off."

"Either that or we die tryin'." Zane affirmed, turning to get walking. "Imma hit Marcus' shop. Could use a better gun for this." The Gigamind SMG was nice but for this? Zane wanted bigger and better for taking on a whole asteroid…that and something else.

"Hmm…how're we gonna pull this one off…?" He looked over at Amara, the Siren lost in her thoughts as she tapped her chin. Zane stopped his own walk and turned to face her, shaking his head.

"Mara, I got it figured out two seconds ago." She raised a brow.

"How?"

"We need to raid a Maliwan supply outpost."

"…okay…what's that got to do with this? We're going on an _asteroid_, Zane. Don't remember there being a lot of air on an asteroid."

"Yeah, hence why we hit the outpost. I did work for Maliwan, remember, and from that work I know they always carry some EVA helmets for soldiers and crewmembers without their fancy armor and gear. We just need to snag, say, three, and we're good to go." She just…stared.

"That's…actually a really good plan. Thank you for coming up with it."

"Welcome! Go tell Mozzy Moze and FL4K 'bout it; meet me down at the dropship in five." Zane was walking again, hurrying to reach Marcus' store and, without giving him time to offer yet another overpriced gun, he hit the vending machine and picked out the SMG he had his eye on; a Hyperion one.

He never figured out why Hyperion guns got more accurate the longer they were fired but it was a useful thing; meant missing actually got somewhere.

Still, with his new SMG, and his old guns sold off in the blink of an eye, Zane ventured down to the cargo bay, already finding Amara and the others there, waiting around.

"So," His voice caught their attention, the Operative vaulting over the railing and landing with a slight thud, brushing himself off. "Did 'Mara fill you in?"

"She did and…" Moze sighed. "It's actually a pretty good plan."

"Well, thank ya, Mozzy Moze—"

"Call me that again and I'm shoving you into the vacuum of space." He made no attempt to hide his chuckling.

"I'll hold ya to that, but for now, let's get a move on. Someone phone Lil and let her know we're making a slight detour instead of heading for Atlas' HQ to meet with the mustached wonder."

"I will do so," FL4K spoke up, already heading for the dropship. "Though I wonder, what's to become of my pets? None of them can survive in space and they don't make EVA equipment for beasts…least, I do not think."

"Shite…they may just have to stay here, then Didn' plan that far 'head I'm afraid." He did, actually; it wasn't that he didn't want the Beastmaster's pets to come along for the ride, he just knew there wasn't anything that could let them join them. "Could probably find a child-sized helmet for your jabber, now that I think 'bout it."

"Then I will go fetch him. He's eager to try out the new Maliwan shock handgun I bought him." Zane saw a series of issues with giving a fucking jabber a gun like that but…he wasn't going to voice any of them. Long as the monkey was shooting the right people.

With all that said and done, Zane took a seat against the wall, inspecting his new firearm.

"Oi, Moze," She let out a grunt of acknowledgement. "Least ya're finally gettin' it."

"Getting what?"

"A chance to fuck over Maliwan." Her face softened. "That laser's important to Maliwan; we blow it up, we fuck them over harder than a banker on New Year's Eve."

"Yeah, I guess—wait what was fuck was that reference?"

"People like to take loans out right before the new year to party. Somethin' like that." Was it true? Probably not, but Zane liked to think it was. It was funny.

* * *

Moze's thumb flicked the switch on her assault rifle, switching it from full auto to burst over and over again to keep herself focused. Standing atop a ruined building in Meridian the Gunner kept her eye to the street below where, if the old man was right, a Maliwan convoy would be rolling by. Why they didn't just fly this stuff to and fro? She didn't know. Maybe they liked to keep a low profile, or maybe they just didn't think about it. Fucking ingrates.

Regardless, she switched the rifle's firing mode once more and mashed her eye against the scope, taking a long, deep breath as she remembered the Beastmaster's words on sniping; while she didn't have a sniper, it was generally the same with the firing mode.

"_Oi, Moze, ya ready?"_ Her earpiece buzzed.

"Yeah. No shooting the truck, right?"

"_Pop the tires, at least. Just don't blow up the truck. We need those helmets. But, feel free to waste Maliwan's soldiers, though." _She didn't need an invitation, but she'd still do it. Moze perked up and looked down, seeing a large, gray colored truck rolling down the road with a few Cyclones accompanying it. There was the convoy…it was time to act.

"…wait, what was the signal—" An explosion made Moze jump a bit. She looked to the building across from her, realizing FL4K's pet monkey had lobbed an incendiary barrel at one of the Cyclones, blowing it to bits. The shooting began immediately; gunfire erupting as the remaining Maliwan soldiers tried to get the truck moving, only for the tires to explode and go flat, courtesy of Moze's assault rifle.

They weren't going anywhere.

The Maliwan soldiers fought as hard as they could but, of fucking course, they were brutally killed. Moze worked her way down the building and back to the street-level in time for Amara to rip the back of the truck open, stepping to the side as an assortment of goods and such fell from the back of the truck.

"Ah-HA!" Zane snatched up what looked like some sort of ring like crown. He set it on his head as a translucent, white screen appeared over his face, Moze stepping closer as the Operative plucked it off and tossed it to her. She caught it easily, bringing it closer and looking over the pretty weird device. It reminded her a lot of the sort of EVA helmets Hyperion and Vladof fashioned for their workers operating in areas with little to no air, but far more sophisticated…so that was good. Long as they could avoid getting shot out there, they'd have an easy time disabling that laser and getting another fragment of the key.

And, not to mention, fucking up Maliwan. That was fun, too.

"_Hey, um, no pressure, but," _She heard Rhys in her ECHO again, just in time for a brilliant beam of purple light to engulf a building in the distance. _"Katagawa…just blew up m-my favorite restaurant. Y-Y-You guys are coming, right?!"_

"Stop crying," Moze grumbled. "We were getting some EVA helmets so we could survive on that damn asteroid."

"_EVA helmets? I could have loaned you some. We got a huge shipment, like, a week ago…granted, not a lot of helmets, but…y'know…" _Moze's eyes twitched.

"YOU HAD SOME ALL THIS TIME?!"

"_I-I thought you were coming right here! I had some lined up for you! What? Did you think I didn't plan for this?" _Moze groaned. So, they attacked a Maliwan convoy for _nothing_…least they got a chance to fuck up Maliwan again. She was cool with that, at least.

"So, these are effectively worthless?" FL4K fiddled with one of the devices before tossing it to their pet, the jabber gnawing on it.

"_Actually, the opposite; we could see what Maliwan does with them and steal their designs to turn a profit."_

"Isn't that just theft?" Amara questioned.

"_We're in the middle of a war with them; I think they lost the right to complain years ago!" _She scowled at his sudden yelling but didn't comment on it. Moze was glad they didn't waste some time and ammo, at least.

"Well, let's bring a haul of this over to Atlas HQ, then. I'll grab us a Technical; you three, stay with the stuff." Zane walked off, Moze leaning against the truck and fiddling with her gun again, flicking between the shooting modes once more.

"You recalled what I taught you." She looked up at FL4K, the Beastmaster reloading their sniper and setting it onto their back. "Regarding how to use a sniper. While your rifle's far from one, I saw you using the same technique. I'm impressed."

"Oh, well, thanks, then. Maybe I should actually pick up a sniper, then. See where it gets me."

"You should. Against some prey, engaging at close range is ill-advised. So, always wise to have a method of contesting over longer distances or, in my case, contesting where they can't even find me." She did recall they always liked to shoot from vantage points enemies wouldn't readily find them…maybe she could try that one day.

That, or stick to wrecking shit with Iron Bear, but she could afford to mix things up a bit.

"I'll see where that gets me."

"So be it." FL4K resumed their own work, Moze continuing to fiddle with her gun. Hopefully, she could turn a profit with the stolen Maliwan goods. She DID see a cool sniper back on Sanctuary. It even had a double barrel shotgun underbarrel!

* * *

"So, Rhys, correct?" Amara was settled in the back of the Technical, finger pressed to her earpiece as she made sure the stolen loot didn't fall out from the bumpy ride. "Any idea how we're breaching this asteroid?"

"_Well," _He began in that shaky voice of his. _"Maliwan's got that laser on lockdown but Iiiii know a way up there. Got an Atlas ship with state-of-the-art cloaking and a buncha other stuff. Should easily get us up there."_

"Wait," She processed that for a moment. "Can't we just use our stolen Maliwan ship?"

"_Ehhhhh…doubtful; they might've already flagged it as stolen by now. Only way to fix that would be to get another ship's onboard OS system and—y'know, lot of boring details. Plain and simple, it'd take a really long time and time's of the essence right now!" _She sighed. The man was pretty high strung, but considering the war he was fighting, he had an excuse.

Didn't make it any less annoying.

"_Hey, you got a fragment?" _And there was the bitch. Like clockwork, Tyren was trying to be insulting. _"Making yourself a Vault Key, eh? Good, save us the work for when we come down there and get what we need." _Amara was pissed, sure, yet at the same time, curious, sorely because FL4K wasn't insulting Tyreen…means she just contacted her alone.

"We're making a fragment, yes, though someone would like a word—"

"_Wait wait wait, don't put the robot on. He's just gonna piss me off again—" _

"I've been listening the entire time," FL4K spoke without missing a beat. "Tyreen, do you need another verbal lashing? Does the bitch need to be tamed again?"

"_N-N-No, we're good!" _The call ended and Amara breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, FL4K."

"You're welcome, though it's a shame she wasn't willing to heed me. I've been picking up some insults from Moze and I've been eager to try them out on someone so easy to emotionally abuse, like a scared, confused animal." That was a…chilling sentiment.

"Oi, we're here. Get ready." Amara turned to see the destination; Launchpad 7, where Rhys asked them to head to. More or less, it reminded her of a pier or something, though for a single ship at the far end of it.

_**BRZZZZZZZZT**_

Correction, it was gone. In one fell swoop, that purple laser obliterated the launchpad and, judging from Rhys' screaming, Rhys' ship in the same instant.

"_Rhys, buddy! Give that unconditional surrender any more thought? Or do you need another gentle, love slap? I got plenty~!" _The smarmy, annoying voice already pissed Amara off. That had to be Katagawa; Maliwan's CEO.

She was going to enjoy breaking his spine.

"Sc-Screw you!" Rhys spat into his own ECHO. He needed lessons from FL4K on how to be cruel.

"_I have people to do that for me, Rhys, but, anyhow, swing by with the paperwork and we'll go ahead and absorb Atlas into the Maliwan family, kay? Oh! And you could bring Zer0, unless he gets lasered…probably lasered." _Amara was going to break Katagawa's everything, now.

"So, what's the plan, mustache man?" Zane hopped out first, Amara following suit and reaching for her shotgun as she walked over to look at the utterly defeated looking Rhys.

"Um..tch…um…NEW PLAN! We steal a Maliwan ship with security codes!" That…sounded very similar to the plan he dismissed earlier, but Amara wasn't going to comment on that; it sounded like Rhys needed a win today. "Here, take this!" He tossed something to Zane, a strange device that the Operative pocketed.

"What is it anyhow?" Moze questioned.

"Oh! The Viper Drive; Atlas' state-of-the-art remote hacking device." Amara doubted that; that ship was called the same and it got obliterated in one instant. "We'll use it to steal a Maliwan shuttle and get you four up to that asteroid. Simple as that!"

"So, we're splicin' a ship's OS system," Zane shook his head. "Coulda just said that. I've done my fair share of splicin' back in me day, but yeah no, this Viper Drive might make shite easier."

"Before we depart, I have one question," FL4K spoke up. "What is going on with your…face plumage? Is it to attract a mate? Scare away predators? Both?" Rhys just looked flustered and frustrated. Seems their friendly robot struck a nerve.

"Focus! J-J-Just find yourself a Maliwan shuttle and pop in the Viper Drive. I'll do the rest from—"

"_Drive's already in." _Amara just…fucking stared. Zane was already gone, Rhys looking even more surprised. _"Do your thing, mustached wonder." _

"O-Oh! Um…okay…got it…and…" Rhys rapidly typed something into his arm before nodding. "Got it! That…ship you found should take you straight to Skywell-27! From there, it's a straight shot to the laser's controls! So…stay safe! And make sure that ship doesn't blow up, else you might not have a way back."

"I'll…keep that in mind; thanks for telling me now instead of when we're already there." Amara shook her head and got walking. At least they were finally getting somewhere.

Besides, she'd get a chance to see how her powers worked in space. That'd be fun.

* * *

"Meat-Thief, are you ready?" FL4K was knelt before the jabber, watching the monkey eagerly don his little EVA helmet and even a shield generator the Beastmaster ripped off a dead Maliwan soldier. It was shoddy, but it'd protect their pet from any damages he'd sustain out in space. Once they made sure their pet was ready, they stood and looked over to Rhys, the Operative working on getting them to Skywell-27 to begin their newest hunt.

FL4K was eager; they only hunted in space once, and it was mainly just them hanging on to the hull of a ship as it left atmosphere.

Still, the ship lurched, the old human standing up and plopping his stolen helmet on, the white screen enveloping his face as he took a long, deep breath. "Alright, we're here. Let's get to work."

"Right," Moze did the same, the Gunner checking her rifle and setting it on her back. "Though it does feel like Iron Bear would be…risky to use out here. Don't wanna risk flying off into space 'cause of its weight."

"Same for my Phase-Slam." Amara's helmet was secure as well, the Siren heading for the airlock. "But I'll make do with what I got."

"I'm glad you three are all ready for this hunt. So, let us go." FL4K opened the airlock and felt a rush of air leave the ship; their optic zooming in and out rapidly as they adjusted, finally seeing their landing site.

It was like a gray, dead wasteland. Bits of rock floated by as, far above them, they could make out the visage of Promethea's surface. Least the asteroid had its own centralized gravity…that eased their worries a bit.

The Beastmaster was the first out, their shoes sinking into the soft rock of the asteroid as they looked about, hearing their jabber land as well, though the jabber's panicked calls told them the beast was still adjusting to being in a low gravity area.

"_Hey, you made it! It worked!" _Rhys' voice invaded their ECHO. _"Glad nothing went wrong, and no death spheres either!"_

"I'm sorry, death-spheres?" An explosion rang out just as they asked that. They looked over their shoulder to see the exploded Maliwan ship. The others were standing with them, safe from the explosion, though their ride was dashed as a large, onyx sphere shot through the air, flying about the gravity-less environment.

"…I'm going to presume _those_ are the death-spheres."

"_Yeaaaaaaahhh…m-my bad for not telling you. Sorta didn't think Maliwan would flag the ship down so soon. B-But, you four'll be able to find a way off the asteroid once it's shut down, right?" _FL4K let out a metallic sigh.

"Augh…we'll see," Zane spoke up before the Beastmaster could, the Operative already getting moving. "But you owe us for that fuck-up. Better get some high-quality wine for this one." The group began to move, FL4K keeping their sniper at the ready. It would be a long way to the laser, and it would be dangerous as well, but at least it was shaping up to be an interesting hunt.

This Katagawa wasn't worthy prey, but it'd be fun to hear him scream as they raked their blade across his eye…

* * *

(This one was…harder, not because it was difficult to write, but because I was going through a lot while writing it and, as a result, had to keep things brief and short. Exams to handle and some other projects commanding my attention. I got things under control now, so that's good at least.

Regarding some of the reviews, I do apologize for some of the grammatical issues; sometimes I forget to give these chapters a good look over and, as a result, sometimes typos slip by me. And, also, I include a few line breaks because it's an easy way to divide up the perspectives. I don't recall if someone mentioned this but mentioning it now in case.

On the topic of Ava, I'm going to try and make her more rational, while at the same time, still allow her moments for outbursts and such because, at the end of the day…she's a teenager. They're ticking, hormonal time bombs. But, her involvement with the scene we all know to be coming will be vastly different and far more justified. So, stay tuned for that and some more emotional scarring.

Until then, stay safe, and happy Thanksgiving!)


	12. Crashteroid Part 1

(So, bit of a preface with this one. I didn't upload last week because, naturally, it was Thanksgiving and I decided to take some time to myself to unwind and relax with the family before finals week. I almost didn't want to upload today because I was taking finals today but then people may begin to tune away from the story and, considering we got past 100 followers, I didn't want to disappoint anyone.

Continuing, I did make a core mistake last time in calling Katagawa Maliwan's CEO; he was really just the guy in charge of Mergers and Acquisitions. I forgot that because, at the time, I was just wanting to punch him in the dick as many times as humanly possible as FL4K. So, my bad for that; I'll do what I can not to repeat such a mistake.

Until then, enjoy this chapter. They may be a while in Skywell-27, so get ready for that.

Enjoy!)

* * *

Zane mentally winced when he watched another, purple beam shoot into the distance and, like all the others, collide with Promethea, no doubt atomizing more of Rhys' favorite stuff. He had to commend Maliwan that it was a smart tactic to get their target to crack mentally, but he also had to say fuck them 'cause they were the enemies, and enemies weren't allowed commendations.

"Hey, what the fuck is that thing?" Zane looked up to see a weird ship whirling by, one that was clearly of Maliwan origin yet didn't seem meant for combat, given the lights and motions of it.

"_That is the Zanara," _Rhys said in their ECHOs. _"Katagawa's pleasure yacht, where…y-y'know, weird stuff happens. Rumor has it he invited his siblings up there and…well killed them all."_

"Why would he do such a thing?" FL4K asked. "Did he desire the role of pack leader or something?"

"_N-No…w-well yes and no; he wanted to be head of Mergers and Acquisitions and, with them all dead, guess what happened?" _Zane frowned at that. Well, this Katagawa was either a grade A scumbag or devoid of any empathy…probably both.

"_Oh, and by the way, be careful with this low gravity. Might take some…getting used to." _Amusingly, he said that right as Moze judged a jump poorly and went careening over it, flailing and spinning before she hit the ground with a thud.

"Fuck!"

"Like that, I'm guessin'." Zane was a lot more careful, leaping over and offering a hand to help the Gunner to her feet, the group moving together around a few, rocky ledges until the rocks gradually became metal. And, of course, there were Maliwan soldiers running about.

Soldiers Zane didn't hesitate to open fire, watching their shields crackle before fading; FL4K finished both soldiers with two sniper shots, the Operative watching the corpses VERY slowly fall to the ground. "…oh…right, who here's got experience with fightin' out in space?" Only FL4K raised their hand. "Okay, for everyone else, don' let your shields drop."

"Why?" Amara questioned.

"We're in the vacuum of space, Mara; your shields drop, a single bullet's gonna make yar insides yar outsides." Zane motioned to the two dead Maliwan soldiers. "In other words, one hit's all it takes."

"That's…sorta fucked but, then again," Moze shoulder her rifle and got to walking. "I usually drop them long before the shields go."

"Glad to hear it. So, let's get a move on and hope they ain' got Shock weapons." It was going to take a while before they reached the heart of the asteroid. Hopefully they could do it in one piece.

Then again, they've been doing well so far. So, that counted for something.

* * *

Moze sucked in air after ducking behind cover, watching her shields gradually recover as she pressed her back against the rock. She got surprised a moment ago, but at least she managed to drop the fucker before they dropped her.

"_Uh-oh, looks like they brought back-up," _Moze groaned at Rhys' voice, popping out from behind cover to see many more Maliwan soldiers approaching, some flying in with jetpacks and others simply using the low gravity to their advantage. _"You-ah-deal with them; I'll make sure they don't get reinforcements…yeaaaaah." _He was useless. Calling Iron Bear out, Moze leapt up as the mech digistructed around her, the Gunner's hands gripping the controls as she open-fired at the soldiers, riddling them with bullets as she advanced forward.

"_Nice work, Mozzy Moze_," She heard Zane from Iron Bear's own personal ECHO. Swiveling, she saw the Operative was busy embedding his weird wristblades into a Maliwan soldier, flinging him to the side as he shot another in the head with his handgun. _"Keep up the good work. Gotta defend this spot 'til we're sure that's all." _

"Right." She had a bit more time before she had to recall Iron Bear; mostly because with the reduction in gravity, she didn't want to risk jumping and end up sending her mech too high. Swiveling back, she peppered a Maliwan soldier with her miniguns, turning them into swiss cheese as, after what felt like forever, the flow of soldiers came to a halt. Another firefight was won. Iron Bear was recalled and Moze made sure to switch her EVA helmet back on, sucking in the stale, sterile air it generated.

"_Alright! Nice murdering! Now, go ahead and pop a Viper Drive into that console nearby…eh…i-is it Chuck—"_

"_Zane."_

"_Right! I will write that down and hopefully not forget it. Anyhow, Zane, drop a drive into the console so I can hack security and get you guys a clear path to the fragment." _Moze reloaded and walked over to Amara, the Siren checking her own firearms as she left Zane to his…splicing or whatever was the fancy word for hacking.

"So…space," She looked up at the distant, captivating nebula above. "Lot louder than I thought."

"To be fair, we're on an asteroid," Amara remarked, resting on a metal crate, fiddling with her wrist mounted handgun that she, most likely, ripped from the hands of a dead soldier. "Not very quiet when it's hurtling about a thousand miles a second."

"Right, yeah." She drummed her fingers onto her thigh. She…didn't really have a lot to talk about; it wasn't that Amara was hard to talk to. She just didn't really have much to talk about. She blamed the atmosphere.

…great, now she was making jokes like Zane…she wasn't letting anyone hear that.

"_Oh, by the way," _Rhys said. _"There MAY be a bunch of guys coming outta those doors…so…be ready for that." _Moze groaned as soldiers came rushing out the open door, shaking her head as she called Iron Bear right the fuck back into action.

She hated this asteroid. Maybe when they were done, she'd make it blow itself up…or see if she could use it to atomize Vladof's HQ. Hopefully it went that far.

* * *

Amara set her shotgun on her back as she reached up to depower the EVA helmet, taking a breath of the artificial oxygen the interior of the Skywell. Her and the others were now within a far more technological place, the only reminder of them being on the asteroid was the gray, rocky floor. From what Rhys had said, they were looking for a service elevator that was supposed to take them right to the laser; while she was looking for a fight, she was also okay with this job being over so soon; mostly because she didn't like space.

The Siren was slumped against the wall, waiting for Zane to finish getting the Viper Drive set up so they could get a move on. For the moment, there weren't any Maliwan soldiers; so either there was a lull in their forces, or they didn't know where they were.

She highly doubted that last part. They DID just murder their way in.

"_Alright, got the Viper Drive popped in? Lemme just get things set and…oh…w-why isn't it working?" _Amara perked up at that. Did that mustached moron mess things up?

"_Rhys, is that you? Welcome!" _A smarmy, suave voice resonated in her ECHO now. One that definitely wasn't the Calypsos and damn sure wasn't anyone she knew…so that only left one other. _"So, once we go 'head and make your unconditional surrender niiiiice and official, you and I are gonn parTAY on the Zanara, my private pleasure yacht. You've seen it, right? Reaaaaaaaally fun stuff goes on in there, if ya catch my drift." _

…she almost wished it was the Calypsos at this point.

"_Oh, and before I forget, security, kill the vault hunters and throw 'em out into space. Don't want their bodies messing anything up, right? Unless they're hot. In which case…well the pleasure yacht could always use some more female attendance, right?" _Amara physically shuddered at that. For once, death was better than being taken alive.

"Amara, Moze, relax," FL4K spoke, clenching their hand as that radioactive energy sparked and gathered. "Katagawa will not take either of you or halt our efforts. Prepare yourselves. We will slaughter them like dumb, dour animals."

"Speakin' my language, tin-man!" Zane was already firing at a Maliwan heavy soldier who made the mistake of being the first one up. "So, pick a spot and pile some bodies!" Amara cracked her knuckles together, her astral arms forming. Moze was already in her Iron Bear, open firing and peppering the approaching soldiers as the Siren leapt up, fists swirling around her before she Phase-Slammed into the ground, sending the soldiers skyward as, this time, she pointed upwards, each fist shooting up to grab a Maliwan soldier and smash them into the ground, spraying bits of blood and chunks everywhere.

"Whoa! Where'd you learn that?" Moze shouted from her mech.

"Honestly, just came to me a moment ago," Amara snapped her fingers, another fist grabbing a nearby soldier and flinging him at the wall. "But, glad to know it works." It _sort of _worked; it took more out of her than her usual Phase-Slam but, at the very least, it was highly effective, so she'd reserve it for crunch time to maximize the carnage.

"_Wait a sec," _And Katagawa was back. Oh joy. _"Why ARE there vault hunters here? Rhys…tell me you're not trying to take out my laser, old friend. It's my favorite, after all." _Even when he was being "friendly" Katagawa came off as insanely creepy. Least that was Amara's opinion.

"_Oh, h-h-hey, um, s-see the thing is, the whole laser thing's making it hard for my employees to work. Kills the mood, y'know?"_

"_Who cares about them; I'm doing this for US, Rhys. The people who matter in this lil' merger war of ours. But you're ruining it, so…guess you need to be punished. Until then, security, KILL THE FREAKING VAULT HUNTERS!" _His composure was breaking. Seems they were getting under his skin. Still, the only thing that could be done was continue to hold off the forces until either Rhys fixed things or until security stopped coming, and considering how many bodies Maliwan was willing to throw at a problem, Amara highly doubted the latter.

Ducking behind cover, the Siren lobbed a grenade into a crowd of soldiers, hearing them explode as she waited for her shields to recover, though she frowned when she realized she was out of bullets for her shotgun.

"Here!" She looked up in time to catch a SMG, courtesy of Zane. "I'll throw ya some ammo in a moment too, just keep us covered." She nodded and popped out of cover, laying down suppressing fire to keep the soldiers from overwhelming them.

"_Oh! Hey! New plan! Head through those ventilation ducts! Should get you outta trouble and get you one step closer to the laser's controls." _Zane was already in said vent duct, FL4K doing the same as Amara grabbed Moze and dove in as well.

"So, where's this lead, anyhow?" Amara asked, beginning to move through the duct, keeping her gun at the ready in case any Maliwan soldiers got any bright ideas to follow them.

"Prob' Maintenance," Zane muttered. "Let's just get a move on 'fore—" Rumbling made him fall silent; rumbling that lasted a few moments before ending. "…fore that."

"What was that?"

"The laser firing," FL4K spoke dryly. "And considering Katagawa has a penchant for aiming for Rhys' favored spots, that was most likely the bagel shop I saw earlier…a shame. I bought some nice bagels for the pets there. I'm going to rip Katagawa's entrails out." Duly noted. Least FL4K had their priorities set, and that the group was on the right path.

She'd have to loot some guns sooner or later, though. And maybe find somewhere to take a breather.

* * *

"_Yo, COV! Bring me a vault hunter's head! I'mma hollow it out and use it for some…stuff while I'm partying on the Zanara." _FL4K tired of hearing Katagawa Jr's voice. He was as annoying as the Calypsos, but currently unable to be insulted as the Beastmaster knew doing so would lead to the perverted fool sending foes right for their location.

They were down for a kill, but their sniper was soon to run low.

Back in the vacuum of space, FL4K took aim and shot a COV psycho's helmet right off, watching him spasm and convulse before his head exploded into mush. They could have shot anywhere else, but such a sight was a brief respite from the barrage of fighting they've had to go through for the last few hours in the Skywell.

"Keep pressin' forward!" Zane shouted, sliding behind a rock just as bullets peppered the spot he was in a moment ago. "Don't let 'em overrun ya!" FL4K set their sniper onto their back, drawing their SMG.

"_Alright, gonna assume my mic's on the fritz, so I'll say it again, KILL THE VAULT HUNTER!"_

"_Psh, you gotta offer something they want, Katagawa." _And there was the bitch's voice. FL4K knew it was a matter of time before she spoke up. _"Here's this, kill the vault thieves and you'll earn a place right next to me when we open the Great Vault! See? Not so hard…also don't talk shit to their robot; fucker likes to insult people." _So she learned; then again, dogs learned after they were punished enough.

The ground rumbled and FL4K looked up in time to see another laser fly past, striking Promethea once more. _"NOOOOOOOO! NOT LAZY RIVER LAND!" _Katagawa Jr was still at it. FL4K honestly felt sorry for Rhys now. No man deserved to have their lazy river atomized.

"_Don't worry, Rhys, we got an anti-grav infinity laser river on the Zanara. Price of admission…? Oh, just Atlas. Nothing you can't afford, right?" _

FL4K was tempted to insult the man now. Very tempted.

"_Oh! Shut down that stabilizing thruster just up ahead. Should buy us some time—" _

"Done!" Zane had already shut it down, the Operative VERY far ahead, waving to the others. "Digiclone helps for travel, friends!" FL4K forgot he could teleport to them.

"_What the hell is happening? I was just about to give Atlas HQ a mohawk! Get those thrusters up and running before I fire you all, personally!"_

"_Alright, good. Now it's just a straight shot ahead and—"_

"_Not so fast, vault thief," _And there was Tyreen. Good. _"Got some fans who'd love to eatcha! Get it?" _

"I do," FL4K retorted. "Do you know what I also get? People who can tolerate me for more than five seconds." And like before, she was silent.

"_Huh…didn't…didn't know you could just insult those two. Been trying for weeks!" _

"Echo frequency one-five-five-four-six. They leave it open, and I abuse it; the Calypsos and stupidity go together like alcohol and sobbing children."

"…_that's…that's sorta fucked." _

"It was an attempt at humor. I see it was ill received. I'll download some better jokes and try those another time." FL4K pressed on regardless. They were a step closer to dealing with Maliwan's gun, and then he could personally kill Katagawa Jr.

Maybe he'd first blow up that pleasure yacht he was on about. See where that went…

* * *

(Alright, feels good being back in the saddle, so here's hoping I still got it. With finals over, I should be able to resume my original updating schedule, unless Christmas falls on a Thursday this year, so stay tuned. Thanks for reading!

...also, as eerie as it was, the alcohol joke was a reference to A Slap on Titan...so...yeah.)


	13. Crashteroid Part 2 ft Rhys-Ball

"And that's the last of 'em." Zane lowered his handgun just as the last Maliwan soldier fell dead; the four of them standing on a metal platform with a slew of deceased Maliwan soldiers scattered about. It was a challenge, yes, but…well…no it wasn't. Maliwan's troops were fucking idiots.

But Zane was a good sport. He'd tell people they give an honest attempt.

"_Alright, good, looks like that's the last of them—"_

"Already made that joke." Zane said dryly, holstering his gun. "But, good effort."

"_Shit, sorry. Anyhow, go ahead and hit that button nearby, and it'll open a chute up. That should get you into the Maliwan base." _Said button was pressed a second later, courtesy of Amara, and the chute in the ground opened up.

"_So, just jump down that chute, and it should put you four on a fast course for the control room. Cause…I don't think Katagawa's gonna let that laser stay down for much longer, and I'll be DAMNED if he destroys my favorite salon!"_

"…he…goes to a salon…?" Moze deadpanned. "That's…weird."

"Ain' terrible, though," Zane pat his own hair with a smirk. "Ya think I got this naturally?"

"I did, cause it looks like shit."

"Heh, well I think it looks amazing." Zane turned his attention back to the chute, scratching his chin. "Still, that's gonna be a long fall. Everyone, use whatever ya can and…I guess slide down the sides." Zane was the first one down, dropping off the platform and, once he was past the rim of the chute, turned to stab his energy wristblades into the side, feeling them sink deep into the metal but, ultimately, stop his fall.

He also had time to reach up and catch Moze by her arm as she fell past, the Gunner swearing up a storm. "…ya dropped yer knife, didn't you?"

"Just shut up and get us down there."

"Heh, should invest in these bad boys, then." Zane gestured to his claws before he began to slide downwards, seeing Amara was using her astral arms to slide down, and FL4K was using their weird knife, though their jabber was simply hanging off their backpack. The descent was a lengthy, boring one, but thankfully it wasn't filled with Maliwan; Zane could fight in a lotta places, but not when he was hanging on to a friend.

The four of them reached the bottom of the chute, Zane letting Moze go and retracting the blades into his gauntlet. "Still, Mozzy Moze, these're pretty cheap nowadays. So, pick some up when ya can."

"Augh…I'll consider it. Now where the fuck are we?" The new area reminded Zane of a mineshaft, except…y'know…shitty. Still, for the time, it was quiet, and if it was on the right path, then there were no complaints.

"We must go," FL4K walked past, shouldering their newly acquired assault rifle, their jabber following suit. "The sooner we reach our destination, the sooner I can rake my blade across this Katagawa's eye."

"…eerily specific—" Zane came to a complete halt when _something_ fired a blast at the spot he was almost a moment ago. He looked up to see _many _floating metal balls, all aiming demented cannons at them.

"…oi, Rhys, are _those_ the death-spheres ya were scared of?"

"_O-Oh, those? Y-Yeah, they are—watch out!" _Zane jerked back as a blast struck the ground, the Operative sighing and tossing out his Digiclone.

As much as he hated to say it, he wished things were easier for once. Cause this was just nuts.

* * *

"FUCK!" Moze panted in exhaustion as she stood over another destroyed death-sphere. When Rhys told her about the damn things, she was expecting some small, weird orbs that just exploded like mines; not fucking laser cannons that had enough plating to match Iron Bear! But, like with everything they've fought, it just took the right amount of bullets to get rid of it.

"_Good, now just go ahead and—"_

"_Die, please. I'm getting quite sick of this little game." _Katagawa's voice made her grunt in annoyance, though that changed to ire when, ahead, the metal doors suddenly slammed shut, sealing them off from their path.

"…Amara, can you punch through these doors?" The Siren shook her head. "Fuck…alright, Rhys, anything on your end? Can your little Viper Drive get us through this shit?"

"_I doubt it; no terminal around. B-But I got an idea! I can remote-control one of those, admittedly, sweet spheres and give you a hand! Just pick one out for me and the Viper Drive will do the rest." _Moze sighed and got moving, hearing the others peppering and destroying the remaining death-spheres as the Gunner looked for one that wasn't trying to blow them up.

It didn't take her long to happen across one, the Gunner tapping it with her foot. "How about this?"

"_Ehhh…nah, that one's full of ratch turds." _She retracted her foot and kept walking, soon finding another death-sphere.

"Aaaaand this one?"

"_Nah, too big; not my style." _Moze's eye twitched, but she just took a deep breath and kept moving. The last one better be it, else she'd punch Rhys right in the dick when she finally saw him.

"Aaaaaand THIS one?"

"_Oh that's PERFECT! Use the Viper Drive and—" _Moze didn't even let him finish; she rammed the Viper Drive into the death-sphere and stepped back, watching it rise up and…she noticed something. For one, it was differently shaped than the others…and it had a heart on it.

…Moze realized this was not a death-sphere.

"Uh, Rhys—"

"Not now," His voice came from the sphere now; that was a change. "Antigravity, too? Very nice! But-ahem-this isn't a probe, by the way, so do not call be Rhys-Probe or whatever. From here on out, I'll be called Rhys-Ball. Wanted to do Rhys-Sphere, but…eh…doesn't roll of the tongue well. So, let's get that door open, and get to the control room." Moze just watched him fly off, looking over to Amara.

"He does know that's a pleasure sphere, right?"

"Shh…let him figure it out." Moze was down for that.

* * *

"_Attention all Maliwan soldiers, first one to bring me a dead Vault Hunter will receive a two-hour pass to the Zanara, and all the pleasures and fun it contains…at a moderate limit." _Amara sighed as, once again, Katagawa tried to incite and inspire his soldiers to successfully killing her and her friends, but, like every other time, the Maliwan soldiers were reduced to pulp and bits before they could get close.

"Anyone else wish we could shut this moron up?" Everyone nodded in response. "Glad it isn't just me. How much further to the control room, Rhys—"

"It's Rhys-Ball, for now. Rhys-Ball."

"Ugh, Rhys-Ball. How much further?" She was mildly tempted to punt him across the room, but shooting at the Maliwan soldiers, unfortunately, kept her busy.

"Um…shouldn't be much further from here. I'm gonna have to stay hidden for the most part…didn't…didn't really know this was a pleasure-bot." Oh, so he found out…Amara was disappointed he wasn't freaking out. But, oh well. She made sure her EVA helmet was functioning as she saw they were back out in the vacuum of space, Amara clenching a hand and sending an astral arm out to grab a Maliwan Heavy, lifting him high into the sky before slamming him down atop his friends, causing them to explode in gore and fire. The path continued to change and, gradually, the amount of Maliwan interference was deteriorating. So, either the soldiers were scared to come after them, or they were actually running out of men, this time.

She honestly wasn't sure which was better, at this point.

"Ah, damnit," Amara came to a halt, seeing a hard-light wall blocking their path. "Katagawa's set up a firewall…tch…alright, so, we're gonna have to destroy the servers controlling them." Amara raised a brow at that.

"I'm no tech expert, but won't that cause a slew of other problems?"

"Psh, like what?"

"I dunno, destabilizing the life support of this base and probably cause it to explode violently?" Rhys was silent.

"I-I mean, if you wanna get technical, it's on the table. But, y'know, that's like a…small…little chance. Like…forty four percent."

"That's the opposite of little!" Amara shouted.

"Look, Mara, push comes to shove, I can figure which server does what and splice it the normal way. This ain' my first time fuckin' up a Maliwan base and it looks like it ain' gon' be the last." Amara was still skeptical, but she was going to see what happened. The door opened and the four of the delved inside, lighting up any Maliwan they saw.

"Heads up!" Amara ducked down as a few blasts shot past, the Siren seeing a newer, unique Maliwan troop there, one that looked purely mechanized as opposed to the others they saw. "Keep eyes on that one! Looks important!"

"Not for long." The Siren sprinted towards the mechanized unit and clenched her fist; her astral arm erupting underneath it and suspending it in the air before she used another one to slam an explosive barrel into it, decimating the mechanized soldier, but it didn't seem ready to die, yet.

"Mara! Heads up!" The Siren felt the air leave her lungs when rockets pelted her; her shields flickered and faded as she hit the ground, though she was able to roll to the side before the Maliwan soldier pressed on their advantage, feeling a hard-light shield envelop her, courtesy of Zane's Barrier. "Ya good?"

"I…think." That was a new experience; actually getting put in the corner. It was one she didn't want to repeat. The Operative offered a hand and she accepted it, getting to her feet and looking over at the mechanized soldier. It was…well it was finally down, namely because FL4K's jabber was smashing it into the ground, the monkey currently irritated and charged with that demented energy.

"We need to hurry," The Siren looked over at the Beastmaster, seeing FL4K currently slumped against a wall, shaking their head. "My energy reserves won't last much longer. I need to recharge."

"I'll find something." Moze holstered her gun and walked off, leaving Zane and Amara in the spacious room filled with dead soldiers.

"Mara, stay here and keep an eye on our metal friend, 'kay? I'll go splice the servers and get things done." He recalled his Barrier and sauntered off, Amara walking over to FL4K and kneeling by the Beastmaster.

"Are you going to be okay?" FL4K nodded. "Out of curiosity, what'll happen if you run out of power?"

"…I'm honestly not sure." They said. "Typically, I manage to recharge my chassis long before I reach this state. Most likely, I'll go into a rest-mode like state, and if I'm not charged then…well death, I suppose." They said it so casually; Amara found that haunting.

"Well, don't worry. Moze's gonna bring you something to give you a boost. But, just in case, hang back so you don't push yourself, okay?"

"Understood. I do not want to shut down. Not on such a glorious hunt." She had to chuckle at that. At least FL4K was an optimist. The Siren could hear Moze approaching, so at least they could get their friend up and running for the last leg of their assault.

The last thing she wanted was to actually lose someone on this fun journey. But, the odds of that were quite slim.

* * *

"Thank you for the assistance again, Moze," FL4K checked their energy stores once more as the group rode the elevator down to the control room. While it wasn't a massive amount of energy, it was at least enough to, hopefully, get them through the rest of this hunt safe and sound. "This energy should be enough to keep me going for a while longer."

"Hey, it's what friends are for, right?" The elevator hit the ground and Zane dropped his Barrier, bullets riddling and striking it as FL4K returned fire with their sniper rifle, popping heads without any hesitation.

"_What the absolute FUCK are you fools doing?! They're in the control room! DO SOMETHING!" _Katagawa was breaking. This was the right time.

"Oi, Katagawa! Why don' ya go cuddle ya're Rhys body-pillow?" Zane's insult spurred Katagawa into angry, incoherent screaming. "Hey, this insultin' thing's pretty fun, FL4K. I'mma make fun of the Calypsos next." FL4K nodded.

"Hey, guys! I think I can hack the laser!" The Beastmaster's attention was turned to Rhys-Ball. "Wasn't hard to get control of it; Katagawa's security's shitty here!" FL4K guessed that was because the obsessive man assumed no one would ever make it this far. Such arrogance was disgusting. "Keep me covered while I finish the hack; I'm gonna blow his precious pleasure boat out the sky!"

"_It's a pleasure yacht you gorgeous moron!" _FL4K did as Rhys-Ball asked, the Beastmaster sniping a few more soldiers and keeping them busy. _"Guuuuuys, let's talk about this; someone stronger was going to take over Atlas regardless. If it wasn't Maliwan, it was gonna be Jakobs, or Vladof, or even Tediore for crying out loud!" _He was panicking. Good.

"Almost got it!"

"_Hang on, don't blow up my pleasure yacht! I got so many fun memories there!"_

"So did I at lazy river park! FIRING!" FL4K felt the ground rumble, the Beastmaster looking over as that purple beam arched across the sky…and engulfed the Zanara, blowing it to bits and, no doubt, eradicating everything and everyone within it. Now, Katagawa's screams were agonized wails.

"You've been avenged, my sweet frogurt…ahem, so, let's get that key fragment. Should be in the center of the room and—" Something emerged from the ground. Something that, in a flash, destroyed Rhys-Ball in a flash of cyan energy. The thing was another death-sphere, but far larger…and far more dangerous.

"_Rhys-Ball! Nooooo!" _

"Everyone, heads up!" The ball fired a laser at the wall and the group took cover, Zane erecting another Barrier and keeping himself covered as he returned fire as best he could. Moze was already in her Iron Bear, returning fire as well, as Amara used one of her astral arms to open fire with two shotguns; something the Beastmaster wasn't even sure she could do. However, FL4K saw their attacks were largely ineffective; the new death-sphere had reinforced armor and was quite durable…almost.

Amid the fighting, they could see there was a power cell; exposed whenever the ball fired its death laser. If they could get close enough, they could damage that core and perhaps create an opening for the others.

"Meat-Thief," The jabber perked up. "Distraction time." The jabber, without missing a beat, picked up a nearby shock barrel and flung it at the sphere, causing it to flinch as FL4K cloaked themselves, sprinting around the sphere and, when it fired its laser once more, they leapt off the edge of the metal platform and stabbed their blade into the metal hull, sinking it deep and anchoring themselves to the side. They could feel the death-sphere shaking itself around and trying to dislodge them, though it was to no avail. Their blade was raised again, and when the core was exposed, FL4K stabbed it downwards, feeling their body quake and spasm as they siphoned the energy from it. It didn't feel too good, but it was helping immensely, evident by the death-sphere slowing down.

"Strike it while it's weak!" They dropped down as the others continued to focus on the sphere and, in a matter of moments, it blew to bits, FL4K landing on their feet and shaking themselves off. Honestly, that plan was…far beyond what they would have normally done; it worked, at least.

"_Woooo! Suck on that, Katagawa! Don't mess with Atlas! Alright, so, Vault Key's in there, Vault Hunters. Go ahead and get it and…I…guess find a way back. Didn't think this through." _FL4K wished they could sigh. Rhys was a poor planner; it made them wonder how he kept Atlas safe for eight years…

"Zane," They mashed their hand down onto their ECHO. "You heard that, correct?"

"_Sadly, yeah, but don' fret. Ol' Zane's got an idea."_

"Define idea."

"_Depends; how much do you wanna bet we can survive a fall from orbit?" _

…FL4K was going to find sighing software as soon as possible.

* * *

(So, bit late today, but I'm recovering from Finals and getting some other works done. But, I'll keep updating this regularly so everyone has something fun to read.

Anyhow, Matt22152 asked why FL4K's the one to insult the Calypsos; the reason for this is because they seem like the sort of person to insult someone, regardless of moral boundaries. That, and it felt funny.

Anyhow, thanks for all the support, and in the coming chapters, we'll be touching on some harsher subjects. So, stay tuned!)


	14. A Brief Respite

"Alright, see ya soon, Lil," Zane sighed as he ended the transmission, looking over to his team as they idled about. They were still in the control room for the laser, idling about and waiting for…well for them to get a means off the Skywell. Zane was still moderately upset Rhys didn't plan a means for them to get off the asteroid once they were done taking out the laser, but he'd take it out on the man's bar when they got down to Atlas' HQ. "Alright, everyone, listen up," Moze, Amara, and FL4K perked up. "Lil' sent Ellie with the recovered Maliwan ship; she's gonna be here in 'bout an hour, so we have 'til then to…I guess idle around and maaaaybe get to where we started from."

"Well, should be a fuck-ton easier," Moze stood up, stretching her arms. "We already wiped most of Maliwan's soldiers here. Should probably even be a nice little walk back."

"A shame; I'm well rested now, and I wouldn't mind a fight." Amara stood up as well, cracking her knuckles. "And I think FL4K's good as well, what with that energy they siphoned."

"Indeed," The Beastmaster pat their chest. "I can go for quite a while. It's almost shameful the hunt concluded when I'm at my best."

"Well, we got choices." Zane shrugged. "We can either head right for the evac spot, or we can hit the bar." Moze raised a brow.

"There's a bar?"

"Yeah," Zane tapped his ECHO device. "I was in their servers, Mozzy Moze; they have a bar 'bout two floors down, where the soldiers here went for relaxing. We could chill there 'til Ellie's inbound." Zane wanted to see Maliwan's alcohol selection and, of course, compare it to Moxxi's.

"Sure, I'm down."

"Likewise."

"I cannot drink, but I will see if they have any food for Meat-Thief." Zane stood up and started walking. It was unorthodox, sure, but the Operative needed a time-killer, and it was this or actively trying to wipe out _all_ the Maliwan soldiers.

It could be done, yeah, but at this point, he wasn't gonna put out the effort unless it meant loot. And Maliwan's guns were shite.

* * *

Well, Moze found out where Maliwan's budget went. The bar was an impressively sized and stocked one; tables set about as the bar itself was stocked with all manners of alcohol and drink. A jukebox played tunes over in the corner as the dim light gave it an eerie, but calm atmosphere. Like a restaurant at night.

"Oi, pick ya're poison." She didn't even realize Zane was already behind the bar; the Operative mixing a few drinks as the Gunner shook her head and sat down at the bar as well, hearing the others do the same. "So, Mozzy Moze, anything ya want?"

"Just…give me a rum and coke or something—" The dark drink was set in front of her before she could finish, Moze just staring at it. "…okay, well, that was fast."

"Thank ya; I pride meself in bein' a good bartender."

"Since when could you bartend?" Amara asked bemusedly, drumming her fingers on the bar counter. "Then again, considering how much you like your drinks, it seems right you'd be good at mixing them, too."

"Right ya are, Amara," He mixed a drink and slid it over to her too. "I have a _diverse_ list of skills. Amusingly, drink mixin's one, so is sign language."

"Wait," FL4K spoke up. "You learned sign language?" Zane's response was a rapid series of hand signals Moze couldn't understand even if he paused between each one. The Beastmaster slowly nodded, reaching down to pat their jabber. "Well spoken."

"Huh." Moze took a sip of her drink, enjoying the mild burn it gave. "…so…here's a thought that, with this lull, is coming back." It was a thought that crossed her mind every so often but, with all the bullshit they had to put up with and go through, she never really had time to linger on and ponder it. "What happens when we're done here?"

"Whaddya mean? We'd head back to Sanctuary and—"

"No, I mean, like, _done_," Moze enunciated. "Done dealing with the COV. Done with all this? Do we go our separate ways or…?" The question, clearly, caught everyone off guard, given how silent they were. She guessed it was something they hadn't considered either, or if they had, they didn't have an answer either.

"We stay together." FL4K spoke at last. "Fate and Death brought us together for something, and so it would be wise for us to remain together, as a pack, from now on."

"Honestly, tin man makes a good point." Zane shrugged. "I only went to Pandora to give meself some time to rest, away from the scallions of people wantin' me dead. Didn' think I'd go there and end up meetin' some mates I'd wanna stick 'round with."

"Agreed. I'll let someone else protect the people back home. I'll stick around with you idiots, see where it takes the Tiger."

"Oi, I prefer 'bold and brash'." Zane smirked.

"Belongs in the trash is better." FL4K added. The moment of tenseness swiftly became relaxed again, Moze smirking herself and nursing her drink. That put that thought to rest; something she thought she'd have done when it was all said and done. Least it put things into perspective. Like it or not, she was stuck with them, and at this point, she wouldn't have it any other way.

Ellie was gonna be there soon. She wanted to try some more drinks before that happened. She had a feeling she'd need the liquid confidence for what was coming when they got to Promethea.

* * *

(So, shorter, non-canon chapter. I wanted to give the characters a moment to breathe, and to answer a question that's pretty rational. Also, I didn't feel like putting out a big chapter today; I had some stuff to handle away from , yet I didn't want to leave you all in the dark. So, thanks for reading, and hope this short chapter doesn't deter anyone.)


	15. Short-Circuited

Zane was glad to be back on Sanctuary. Sure, that Skywell was fun, but after a while, it got pretty fucking tiring and annoying; something the Operative rarely expected to ever use to describe something.

But, at least it was over.

"Ah, another fragment of the key; very good." Zane watched Tannis appraise and look over the Vault Key Fragment, even going so far as to…sniff it, apparently, much to the aged man's quiet disgust.

Tannis freaked him the fuck out. He just…felt like saying it aloud would create some problems.

"So, we're good? One more to go?"

"Oh, yes, of course. One to go, and then we can access the Vault hidden on Promethea and see if we can utilize the resources within to hinder the Calypsos or whatever our plan was again." Either Lilith didn't tell her, or the weird scientist just…legitimately forgot. Zane wasn't going to press on it.

"Right. So…we're just…gonna take an hour or two and get on findin' the next one." Moxxi's bar wasn't far; Zane was gonna need plenty of alcohol for the next stretch of things. Sauntering out of the lab, the Operative made his way into the bar and was surprised to find Maya there, the other Siren sipping at a martini and chatting with Moxxi.

"Huh, didn' know you two knew each other." Maya turned around and nodded.

"We go pretty far back; the other Vault Hunters and I met her when we were dealing with Handsome Jack's bullshit. Though, glad to see you're still running the bar, Moxxi."

"Always will be, sugar." She crooned, moving to mix some more drinks as Zane plopped down at the bar himself.

"So, got a few questions for ya; questions Mozzy Moze made me think about." Maya raised a brow. "What happened to ya and yer mates; the other Vault Hunters." That made Maya frown; one that told Zane a lot of things, but above all else, it told him things didn't go so well.

"We…more or less, fell apart. Not-like-having a falling out, no. Just…well after Handsome Jack's death, we sort of just…stuck around for a while, but that spark sort of just faded."

"Faded?"

"Yeah," She finished her martini. "Sure, Jack's reign was a fucking nightmare on Pandora, but, in a sense, it kept us all together; kept us pushing towards a common goal. With him and Hyperion gone, we sort of just…didn't see a reason to stick together anymore. We're still friends, more or less, but we're just not a team anymore." Zane tapped his chin. That sounded cryptic.

"So, what happened? Where'd everyone go?"

"As far as I know, Axton went off to be a mercenary and is doing pretty well for himself. Salvador's running around Pandora somewhere, though, with the COV running about, I'm hoping he hasn't fallen in with them." She sighed. "Gaige's somewhere out there, with her robot, and Zer0…well you know where he is."

"Yeah, I do. He's doin' pretty well for himself. Even if his boss is a wimp." Maya chuckled.

"That he is…and…well there was one more Vault Hunter, Krieg. What happened with him hits me the most."

"What happened? You had to leave him behind?" Maya's silence told him what he needed. "Oh…well…shite. I take it things weren't mutual?"

"Sadly. I needed to go back to Athenas, to protect the Order and the people there and he…well, he stayed behind on Pandora, like Salvador. The only thing I know about him is, thankfully, he hasn't fallen in with the COV."

"How do ya know that?"

"If he was, you'd all be dead right now." That was…well that was comforting. "I'm worried about him. When we had downtime, I always noticed he was fighting himself; like the sane side of him was bickering with the psycho side. Makes me wonder how far he's gotten now." Zane drummed his fingers on the bar.

"Why don'tcha go visit him?"

"Augh…I don't even know the first place to look for him. And besides, we need to get rid of the COV first; then I can tie up loose ends and, maybe, get the group back together. See if things can be like old times."

"Well, we'll see 'bout that." Zane mulled on that; something he didn't frequently do. Made him wonder about what him and the others talked about; when they got rid of the COV, would they really still stick together? Or would that spark fade, and they'd fall apart like Maya and her group did?

"_Hey, killer, can you come see me on the bridge?" _His earpiece buzzed.

"On my way, Lil." The Operative stood up and got walking. "It's been fun, Maya, but Lil needs us."

"I figured. Stay safe out there." The Operative reached the bridge in no time, the other Vault Hunters standing around, listening to Lilith who, upon seeing him, gave him a firm nod.

"Good job out there, Vault Hunters. Thanks to you four, Atlas might just survive this war, but we can't lose sight of the Vault. We gotta get there before the Calypsos, and now we have an advantage."

"Yep, so no matter what, they ain' gonna get into that Vault." Zane affirmed. Lilith nodded herself, heading to the center of the bridge.

"Hell yeah, but for now, let's check in with Rhys. He's supposed to have intel about the final key fragment." Zane walked over as Claptrap dialed him up, though as the robot muttered to himself, Zane raised a brow.

"The fuck kinda name is Strongfork?"

"Is that not a pitchfork?" FL4K inquired. The robot's question went unanswered as the Atlas CEO appeared.

"Heeeeey, thanks for fixin' my little death-laser problem; morale's soaring, cause of it!" Rhys exclaimed.

"You're welcome. So, do you know where the key fragment is?" Lilith asked. Rhys, now, looked quite distressed.

"Well and, uh…pl-please don't be mad…but…I have the third key fragment. It's in here Atlas Headquarters." Zane's eye twitched.

"What the absolute fuck? It's been with you this whole time?!" Moze said it for him, thankfully.

"I-I mean, yeah; look, key fragments are worth billions. The research benefits alone could keep Atlas profitable for decades! I've already done some experiments with it, some…taste tests, that sort of thing. Fun fact, the key tastes like sour apple, so that's nice."

"Why were you licking it?" FL4K asked, though it didn't seem like Rhys was going to answer.

"T-The point is, you've earned it. So, c'mon down to Atlas HQ whenever you want to, and I'll gladly hand it over." Zane sighed. Well, at least that made things better. "I'll have Zer0 let you guys in through the secret entrance, that way, no one panics cause you four are pretty scary…especially you, um…i-is it Frank?"

"FL4K." The Beastmaster said dryly. The transmission ended and Lilith shrugged.

"So, you four can head down there whenever you want to." The Operative nodded and left the bridge, heading back to the bar so he could catch the drink he wanted, seeing Moxxi mixing another drink.

"Hey, sugar," She set down a freshly made rum and coke, no doubt for him. "I got a lil' proposition for ya, if you're interested."

How could he refuse?

* * *

"So, explain to me again why we aren't heading straight for Atlas HQ?" Moze asked as she stepped out of her Cyclone, making sure the keys were with her as the Gunner watched her friends do the same. They were in an odder area of the city; one that seemed generally populated by COV fuckers as opposed to Maliwan's fuckers. While normally, she wouldn't give two shits, something about this didn't sit right to her.

"Moxxi asked me for a favor," Zane said, loading his handgun. "Whaddya know about a fella named Killawatt?" Moze furrowed her brow.

"Nothing."

"Good. Moxxi filled me in; he's a bigshot billionaire who's apparently hostin' a 'free for all' for ladies, and whoever wins can have sex with the dumb bastard."

"…why would anyone—"

"Money does wonders to the mind, Mozzy Moze. Makes people do stupid shit. That, and most of the broads in this competition are already pretty fuckin' stupid." He had a point.

Still, Moze noticed that her and the others were at the entrance to Lectra City; a rugged, run-down part of the overall city that, for the most part, seemed like COV territory.

It also didn't help that they were standing at what appeared to be a red-carpet event, with screaming fangirls, all of them chanting that guy's name.

And, on cue, a death-sphere appeared, with the holographic silhouette of the man himself.

"Hey! Only broads are allowed to participate in this battle royale, but, then again," The sphere loomed eerily close to Moze. "This one's pretty cute. You wanna bed a millionaire, girl?" She was repulsed and disgusted at the same time and resisting the urge to blow the bot to bits.

"She ain' here to slob on that pencil yer packin' downstairs," Zane interjected. "We're here on behalf of Moxxi. She wants us to fight in her name; draw this shite out and all that."

"Ooooo, now I'm interested! I'll see where this goes, then. Til then, here's the rules. Every contestant has a token; whoever gets four tokens wins the grand prize, two rounds of sex with ME!" Moze had to hold back bile. The fangirls scattered to, no doubt, participate, the Gunner shaking her head.

"Well, that was gross."

"No kiddin'," Zane shook his head. "Regardless, Moxxi needs some time to get down here and find something that'll cut Killavolt's cord, so, for now, we gotta play along." Moze grimaced.

"I'm not bedding that assclown."

"Never said ya had to. Judgin' from things, he's a one pump chump." The Operative looked over to Amara and FL4K. "So, we're gonna have to split up. Find a broad with a token, lay 'em out. When ya get your token, head to the bar here. Moxxi's gonna mark it on your ECHOs or whatever." Moze was still wondering why they took such a disgusting detour to their mission but…she could look at the bright side, at least.

Murdering Killavolt would be funny. Least she hoped it would be.

* * *

Amara ran her thumb over the bloodied token, shaking her head as she made her way to the bar Zane talked about earlier. She didn't expect there to be so many COV morons out here but, at the very least, they were about as coordinated as the usual bunch were, hence why they were nothing but bits scattered around. That fangirl was even weaker; Amara just Phaseslammed her once and the bitch exploded into gore.

She wanted a work-out at least, but unfortunately, she got merely disappointment, just like any woman to leave Killavolt's bed, most likely.

The Siren also ran her thumb over the battery she collected; something Moxxi told her to start gathering after one of the others laid out the first contestant. Apparently, they were needed to destroy Killavolt's shielding; something Moxxi said that made the assclown practically invincible.

That was going to change, thankfully.

Arriving at the bar, Amara found the others all sitting and standing around, Moxxi mixing Zane a drink that the old man downed in one fell swoop, though the bartender's focus was drawn to her as she approached. "Well, do you have it?" Amara set down the token and the battery, Moxxi giving a grin as she accepted just the battery. "Good, should make this a lot easier. Thanks to how…lackluster Killavolt is, I often had to experiment and make my own toys to compensate for his disappointment; this is a…special kind of toy."

"Diggin' the innuendos, Mox," Zane chuckled, pounding back another drink. "But, how're we gonna get your gadget on him?"

"Hand it in with the tokens, silly. I implanted it in my own token, just to make sure he doesn't miss it." Amara accepted the clearly rigged token, taking care not to trigger it as she stuffed it into her pocket. "Now, head to his…ugh…'Killarena', and hand in the tokens. Then, take him out in any way you like."

"Good," Moze was already heading out. "I wanna get this shit over with; if I have to hear one more innuendo from that fucker, I'm gonna stomp on his dick with Iron Bear when we see him."

"So long as you don't damage his head," FL4K was heading out as well. "I could use it for a trophy…or a coffee holder."

"Aye, so let's get this show on the road." Zane was gone as well, leaving Amara to stand in the bar alone for a moment, the Siren looking over at Moxxi.

"Before I go, I got a question."

"Shoot."

"Why do you even have a bar here?"

"Atlas' CEO owed me a favor; I cashed it in and got a bar set here. It _was_ supposed to be a nice lil' hangout spot for anyone and everyone but then Maliwan had to go and ruin it."

"Ah." That made sense. "One more thing, what exactly are we getting out of this?" Moxxi tapped her chin.

"Let's just say your Operative friend's asked me for a special favor. One that involves helping a friend out." Helping a friend? Well, that was cryptic. But, still, Amara followed with the others and, after murdering literally anyone and everyone, they were standing at the entrance to Killavolt's arena, and after a quick ECHO from Moxxi, were inside.

The lobby of the 'Killarena' was honestly quite luxurious, but then again, it was luxurious compared to the rest of Lectra City. Zane was already ascending the stairs, the Siren hearing the distant, yet close chants of fangirls for the lecherous bastard, so they were close to finally finishing this shit.

Following with the others, Amara found herself standing in a narrow corridor with a large hole at the end. And, of course, the fangirls were chanting and standing around, though they all glared daggers at them upon arrival.

"Go home, Vault Thieves! Before we—"

"Before you what?" FL4K questioned, reaching for their knife. "Last I checked, we slaughtered the contestants and, if you continue to run your mouths, you'll be next." Now all the fangirls were just…terrified, staying silent and adverting their gazes.

"Huh…good work." Amara dropped down the hole, as did the others, the Siren finding herself standing in a large, clearly dangerous looking area. Fans were corralled and gathered above it to watch as, standing in the middle, was the douchebag himself.

"Well, Vault Thieves, hand over the tokens, and if you're lucky, I might let y'all watch the fun." Amara resisted the urge to gag, but waited until the others handed over their tokens before she approached and handed over her rigged token.

"Nghghghgh!" His shield exploded and he collapsed to a knee, Amara following up with a Phaseslam at point blank, sending the moron flying into the wall.

"I am neither man, nor woman," FL4K stepped forward, readying their sniper. "But both deserve more respect than you give." The arena floor was engulfed in electricity, Amara leaping over it as best she could while peppering Killavolt with her shotgun, hearing the others do the same. Unfortunately, she didn't make any lasting injuries, namely because the fucker had another shield that was soaking up damage.

"Get the Vault Thieves!" Some of the fans were leaping down from their stands, charging them now. Amara made short work of them with her shotgun, reloading it rapidly and—

"Amara! Look out!" She turned just in time to feel something shove her back, watching FL4K get struck directly by an electrical wave, sending the Beastmaster to the ground, sputtering for a moment.

"FL4K! Are you okay?"

"I'm quite fine," The Beastmaster whacked their head a few times. "My optic is just temporarily malfunctioning. It should be fine in a moment."

"You won't get one! AHHAHAHAH!" KIllavolt exclaimed; Amara wasn't going to give him the option. Another electrical wave came, this one at her. The Siren leapt over it easily as she clasped her fists together, Astral Arms forming around her as she slammed her fist into Killavolt's head, the fists all doing the same, over and over again, until the moron staggered backwards. His shields were obliterated, and he was in poor shape. The fight was clearly over, and honestly, it was at least entertaining.

Too bad it was Killavolt's last.

"You thought you were hot shit," Amara clenched her hand, one of her Astral Arms clamping down around Killavolt's neck. "But now you'll be in a ditch." And then she squeezed, ending the man's life in a gruesome, bloody display.

"_All fizzle, no sizzle—as always, Kenneth," _Moxxi chided via ECHO. _"Good riddance! Take his backpack, Vault Hunters. I got just the place for it. And Zane, I'll be glad to help you with your special problem when you get back." _

Amara was still curious as to what Moxxi meant, but it sounded like she was going to get her answers back at the bar.

Or at least she hoped she would.

* * *

FL4K was…moderately amused by Moxxi's idea. She used KIllavolt's backpack to power an outhouse dedicated to him; the Killer Crapper or whatever she decided to call it. It was an amusing play on words and a fitting memorial for someone so dishonorable.

A shame the head was gone; they wanted it as a trophy, but Amara destroyed it. FL4K was fine, though. Such a trophy would have been gross to look at, anyhow, considering the prey's life. They could also hear Moxxi congratulating and praising the others, but they were fine to not be included for now. They were just questioning why they didn't bring their pets.

Then again, FL4K didn't want their beasts eating junk food.

"As for your problem, Zane, I'll be glad to pull some strings and see what I can do, sugar. Feel free to drop by this bar, or the one above." FL4K turned around as the Operative and the others were leading, the Beastmaster speeding up to catch up with them.

"Zane, what was the issue you requested Moxxi's aid with?" The older man just shrugged.

"Somethin' for a friend up in Sanctuary. Don' worry 'bout it." FL4K was still confused by what that meant, but it sounded like they weren't going to get an answer.

Oh well. It was probably nothing anyhow.

* * *

"…_and that's the gist of it. Seems like you're needed once again to save the galaxy, though the stakes couldn't be higher." _He gripped his ECHO in hand, listening to all of this with the biggest grin imaginable on his face. _"I'll be sending some messages to the others, seeing if they're down to help out and—"_

"Don't bother, Moxxi," He cut her off, making no effort to hide the glee in his voice. "They're down. We've been waiting for a chance like this for years, and we ain't gonna let it go to waste." He was already gearing up as he moved, picking up his guns and slinging them onto his back.

"_Good to hear, sugar. Head to Promethea however you can. Oh, and one more thing."_

"Yeah?"

"_Make sure you shave before you get down there, Axton. You look like a hobo." _The Commando simply grinned.

"Chicks dig the beard, Moxxi. But I'll at least trim it up. Gotta look great for a reunion, after all."

* * *

(I was almost not going to upload today; what with it being the day after Christmas. But, things happened, and so I decided to at least give a bit of major plot while having the Vault Hunters handle a side quest. Seeing where that went.

Also, to address a question someone asked, there aren't any Fast Travel or New-U stations. The reason being that, as far as I recall, both were operated by Hyperion, and with them withdrawing from that part of space, both would fall into disarray and disrepair, making them dangerous to use. That, and they take out any tension as, anytime, the Vault Hunters can return home, instead of having to stick around on a planet until they were done.

But, for now, thanks for reading, and happy holidays!)


	16. A Merger Ended

"Right, here we are, Atlas HQ!" Zane stepped out of his Cyclone and looked at the back entrance that Zer0 mentioned to them earlier; the place Rhys asked them to use so they wouldn't cause…well issue, apparently.

Zane found it to be bullshit, considering these people had seen and dealt with far worse but, whatever. He wasn't gonna get pissy with the CEO unless he gave him an excuse.

"Finally…took fucking forever," Moze griped, the Gunner reloading her rocket launcher and setting it on her back. "Why'd we even help that guy find his wife? Did anyone even remember that guy's name?"

"It's not relevant." FL4K was already moving, now with their skag following eagerly behind them. It took a quick pitstop back at Sanctuary to get that…also Lil' wanted the damn mutt off the ship cause he tried to eat someone. But…details.

With the group set, they stepped through the doors and got moving, Zane taking a moment to appreciate that, despite Atlas being in a losing war, their HQ still looked pretty decent…then again, what base didn't have a damn shield generator?

"_Come up to my office slash museum grade aquarium and I'll get you that tasty, apple flavored Vault Key fragment," _Rhys said through the ECHO. _"Now I just have to find out where Zer0 disappeared to…anyhow, the guy up ahead will let you in. Liam's a bit…trigger happy, but—" _A gunshot rang out and Zane already had his handgun leveled at the shooter, at Atlas soldier who stood there, shivering and absolutely terrified.

"…control yer men, Rhys." Zane dryly said. "We're with yer boss, soldier. Step aside."

"S-S-Sorry, just can't be too sure anymore. With how Maliwan's been hammering the city, everyone's on edge." Zane waited for the soldier to step aside, heading through the set of doors first in case anyone else decided to get trigger happy. Thankfully, that wasn't the case as the Operative and company found themselves within a lengthy hallway that led to a pristine, ornate lobby that shamed every other lobby Zane had ever been to…and one of them had a free minibar!

"_Welcome to Atlas! Yeah, I rebuilt this place from the foundation after my own Vault adventure. Took…well quite a while, but it wasn't hard since the old Atlas was just a pile of glass sand and bankruptcy when I got here."_

"Any idea what caused that?" Zane asked, looking about the place as his friends trekked ahead.

"_From what the records say, they pissed off a set of Vault Hunters. I…honestly think it was Lilith and her group."_

"Oh, sounds old."

"_Yeah; happened almost a decade ago. But, anyhow, they were basically on life support when I got here, so I pulled some strings, called in a few favors, and embezzled a LOT of money from Hyperion to get Atlas where it is now. It ain't perfect, but I feel like I did pretty well with this place."_

"_Yes, and I'm gonna enjoy watching it burn from the inside out!" _Zane furrowed his brow when he heard that fucking weirdo, Katagawa, chime into their conversation. Did Rhys forget to contact them on a fucking secure line?

"_Get over it, Katagawa! You can't hold the city, the key fragment's slipped through your weirdly lotioned fingers, and NOW you're losing your grasp on reality, I think! That's three hand things right there! Y-You can't get past my defense turrets!" _

"_Maybe I can't, but your friend Zer0 can."_

Oh, that didn't sound good. The explosion Zane heard moments later confirmed that.

"Rhys, any clue what that was?"

"_Th-The Defense Command center! Oh no…WE'VE BEEN BREACHED! ALL TROOPS TO THE COURTYARD! And where the hell is Zer0?!" _Zane turned to see Maliwan dropships already incoming, firing at whatever they could as they deployed soldiers who, naturally, were lit up by his friends.

"_Vault Hunters, we're dead without those turrets! Do you think you can—"_

"Rig 'em back up and save ya? I can do it." Zane was already peppering a nearby soldier, mulling over carefully what both Rhys and Katagawa said. As far as it sounded, the grubby little merger's director managed to turn Zer0 to his side, and Zane personally knew how dangerous he was in a fight, and what he could do.

If Zer0 was playing for the other team, then he would actually have to take things seriously, or else they wouldn't last four seconds in a fucking fight.

* * *

Moze curb stomped a Maliwan soldier, swearing and grunting the entire time before the fucker stopped moving. The Maliwan assault, thankfully, was simmering down; especially because a literal minute ago Rhys just atomized one of their ships with some sort of orbital laser; probably the one Katagawa used, but she couldn't be sure, nor did she really want to be. Huffing and panting, the Gunner reloaded her assault rifle and struck it on her back, hearing Rhys babbling in her ECHO, but she couldn't be bothered to really translate.

"Is mister fancy CEO okay?" She asked Amara, who nodded.

"He's thanking us for destroying the ship and defending Atlas," The Siren cocked her shotgun and set it aside. "Though, now, he seems to be trying to find Zer0…and Katagawa's saying something about that."

"Saying what?"

"Something cryptic and ominous about how Zer0 would be finding him." Moze raised a brow at that. That perplexed her; in the brief time she knew the…weird assassin, she figured him to be a loyal, if not a bit eccentric person. Why would he turn on his friends? Sure, there was the possibility Maliwan was loading his pockets, but at the same time, that didn't feel like the case. Not to Moze, at least.

"_Your mind games won't work, Katagawa," _Moze tuned back in to hear what seemed like a very heated exchange through ECHO devices. _"Zer0's on my side! Oh, oh—see? He just walked in. Yo, Zer0, everyone's lost their minds and—waitwhatnonononon—AHAHAHA!" _The line went dead, and Moze sighed.

"So, the assassin's stabbed our friend in the back, probably literally. Means we gotta kill him, right?"

"No." FL4K spoke up. "I know Zer0. He did not betray Rhys. Something else is going on."

"Um, I hate to break it to ya, FL4K, but that call sorta says Zer0's turned on us." Zane shook his head. "We gotta put 'em down."

"No." FL4K repeated, causing Moze to frown. What the fuck was their problem? "Zer0 hasn't turned to Katagawa's side, and I can prove it. So, let us go."

"Go where?" Amara asked.

"To Rhys' office. We will get answers, and then we will destroy Maliwan." Moze was disturbed by FL4K's sudden…devotion, but she didn't question it as she followed with the Beastmaster. Honestly, they tended to know what they were doing, so if they thought Zer0 was safe then…well at the very least she'd keep an open mind.

She just hoped she wouldn't _literally_ have her mind opened.

It didn't take long to reach an elevator, Moze waiting patiently as Katagawa went on and on in his monologue to Rhys, telling him what they could have become. It was…very disturbing. She knew the man was unhinged but this was…a new side of that insanity.

And then the doors parted. Moze visibly winced at the sight of the corpse laying on the floor; she'd seen and inflicted FAR worse, yes, but this was one of the Atlas soldiers who lay dead…and there was a sword embedded in him. A sword that mysteriously looked like Zer0's sword.

"Oh, this ain't good…" She breathed, swiftly taking point and stepping forward, gun at the ready. She heard the others follow behind her as the Gunner swept the room, keeping a close eye out for any Maliwan soldiers…or for Zer0.

Moving forward, Moze found herself in…well what looked like a very decorated aquarium; Rhys' office wasn't far, which meant Zer0 wasn't either.

"Well, this convince you yet, FL4K?" She called over her shoulder.

"It does not." They responded. "This isn't like Zer0. Not like the assassin I befriended."

"Times change, friend," Zane noted. "Zer0 might have changed to."

"He hasn't." The way their voice dipped, it chilled Moze a bit. They reached Rhys' desk and found it empty, with a few slash marks about it but, thankfully, no blood. So, that meant he got away, at the very least.

"Wait, hold up." Zane stepped forward and looked over the desk.

"What are you—" Amara's question went unanswered as, with a lurch, the desk began to slide back, revealing a trapdoor of some sort, one they all swiftly slid down, landing them all on the roof, just in time to see Rhys drop from running, with Zer0 looming over him.

Though…that…didn't look like Zer0. Not at all. For one, his color scheme was different, and the Maliwan insignia was all over him. However, he walked with the same, confident stride the assassin always walked with…so…

_**CLING!**_

A blade met the assasin's, and sure enough, there were two Zer0's standing there, one with the correct color scheme. The two of them began to clash and fight, Moze watching in slight awe before one's blade swung and cleaved the other's helmet off.

And, in a flash, all doubts were gone as she saw the seedy bastard himself standing there, Katagawa.

"Grrr," He grunted, rubbing at his head before approaching the CEO again. "You should have joined the family, Rhys—UGH!" The insane fucker got sent skidding away, courtesy of a well-timed shove from FL4K.

"Go! Get the CEO to safety," They called to Zer0, who effortlessly got himself and Rhys away from Katagawa. "I will deal with this foe."

"Ha! You! A mere robot?! Fine; I could easily build another death-sphere from your scrap—" An astral fist met his head, causing Katagawa to stumble back and, with a mighty leap, propel himself atop one of the many pylons on the roof.

"We gotcha, FL4K," Amara cracked her knuckles. "And my bad for doubting you."

"Same, cause, like," Zane tapped his ECHO. "We missed a LOT of chatter 'bout this. Seems that fucker was runnin' 'round the HQ, killin' everyone while we were holdin' Maliwan back."

"Then let us make him pay for everyone slaughtered." Katagawa was groundside again…along with many duplicates of him. Moze didn't hesitate to pop one in the head, watching it dissipate into shards of light that disappeared as well.

"Digiclones?" She muttered. "Ain't this your shit, Zane?"

"Yeah," The Operative was peppering his own string of duplicates, hosing them down with shock rounds from his SMG. "Cept my device only makes one. Dunno how many his can make."

"As many as he likes," FL4K wrenched their blade from a fallen copy. "Katagawa, through some means, has managed to replicate Zer0's technology. Zer0 has very little limit on how many copies he can make, so long as he has energy."

"And we're surrounded by pylons." Moze concluded. Well…that wasn't good. More of Katagawa's doppelgangers dropped down from the pylons, the Gunner calling Ironbear down and mowing down as many as she could, doing all she could to keep them at a distance as, judging from how those swords looked, one hit would be enough to shatter her shield…and then cleave right through her.

"Anyone got eyes on the original?" Zane shouted, slashing a duplicate with his wristblades, only for one to slash him across his chest, Moze's eyes widening as a long, bloody slash welled up across his chest.

"YOU FUCKERS!" The rockets came flying and obliterated those duplicates, Zane dropping to a knee, clutching his chest. "Old man, are you good?!"

"Yeah, just gotta catch myself. Mara Mar, can ya throw me a health syringe? This ain' deep but…well it doesn' feel good." The fighting went on, with more of the duplicates being dissipated, though quickly, Moze noticed something.

FL4K was gone.

"AUUUUUUGGGGHH—OOOF!" Katagawa hit the ground, having quite literally been flung to the ground, courtesy of FL4K who, moments later, hit the ground.

"I've waited for this for quite a long time." FL4K growled, that venomous tone frightening Moze as she watched the Beastmaster approach Katagawa who scrambled to get his sword. That was ruined when the robot, with one fell swoop, embedded their knife into his forearm, and with a gristly twist, snapped his arm. "Out of all those I've hunted, I can safely say you disappoint me the most. You slaughtered your kin for the chance to rule. Squandered it on a mere merger and devastated a man's life; a man with an utterly magnificent mustache. You are no worthy hunt," FL4K's hand enclosed around a now cowering Katagawa's neck, hoisting him high. "So, you will be given the ultimate dishonor."

"A-And that is?"

"Flaying." Moze could safely say she had never heard the sound of flesh being ripped from muscle until now.

…it was a sound she honestly wished she could unhear.

* * *

"So, ahem, is…that going to just be out there?" Amara shrugged to Rhys' question, the Siren glimpsing at the flayed, skinless corpse of Katagawa hanging outside. Back in the man's office, they were recovering and winding down from the fight. Maliwan's campaign was, probably, over, and they could afford a respite.

"It will be a reminder for Maliwan," FL4K spoke up. "The fate that awaits them if they so much as set foot on this planet."

"Oooookay…getting Pandora vibes…"

"I'm just glad ya didn' betray us, Zer0." Zane was on a couch, patting his now healed chest. "Cause I really didn' wanna fight ya. Me tools are good, but not enough to match ya."

"It's fine, Vault Hunter/I was on the hunt for him/and now he is dead."

"Like I said, Zer0," Rhys chuckled. "I super trusted you the whole time, and it was completely justified, even though the men were screaming the exact opposite. Anyhow, I had Zer0 go get it for me, and here it is," The man presented the key fragment, though when Amara went to take it, his hand moved back. "B-But, before I give you this, I have one last thing to ask…am I pulling off this mustache or what?" Amara…was at a loss for words, not just because of his actions but also from the question in general. She didn't even have an answer.

"Its glory is unrivaled," FL4K spoke up. "It's shining countenance sublime. The stars in the sky have gone dim, for all their brilliance is here, on your face. It's…pretty fucking sweet, dude." Now they were all at a loss for words. Including Rhys.

"…was…um…well, t-that's all the motivation I need. A-Anyhow," He passed the fragment to Amara. "Here you go. And I can arrange for a ship to get you four back to Lilith, safe and sound." Amara nodded and got moving, the four of them following Zer0 as she nudged FL4K's side.

"Where'd that little bit come from? Was that a confession?" She chuckled. FL4K shrugged.

"I know a good mustache when I see one. Zane also has a high quality one."

"Thank ya." Amara couldn't hide her grin as they all continued. Now they were far ahead of the Calypsos, and with their lead they could get to the Vault and get whatever they wanted first…though really, she didn't know for what.

…she still didn't get Lilith's plan. But she refused to lose faith in it.

* * *

(So, here's this shorter chapter, though before we get to the chapter we're all waiting for, I may do a few non-canon ones, namely to flesh some stuff out and mend some issues I've been having. Thanks for sticking with this story so far people; it's not perfect, but those reviews always bring a smile to my face and keep me motivated to see this through to the end, and do what I can to fix all the issues with Borderlands 3's story. Besides, least this didn't get the _My Immortal _treatment…that'd have sucked.)


	17. Bonding

They were in need of a new rifle. Their time hunting on Promethea made that clear. FL4K walked down the hallways of the ship, browsing some stuff on their ECHO device as they proceeded towards Marcus' store to sell their outdated, useless firearms and see if the greedy salesman was willing to sell them a decent sniper rifle.

Then again, considering Marcus' business ethics, it would no doubt be scavenged from dead foes…so FL4K was expecting a shitty Maliwan elemental sniper rifle.

The Beastmaster arrived to the store and, surprisingly, didn't find Marcus there, but they did hear shooting emanating from down the hall. FL4K followed and, surprisingly again, didn't find Marcus there, but someone else.

"You're almost there," Maya stood with crossed arms, watching Ava try, and fail, to pop a target with an assault rifle. "Just, like, brace yourself against the gun and shoot."

"That's what I'm doing!" Ava fired again and, like before, she missed her mark.

"What is…what is this?" The Beastmaster finally asked, Maya sighing and shaking her head.

"I'm trying to train her a bit but…well I'm not a good teacher, let's just say that." At least she wasn't blaming the pupil. "She wants to go with us to open the Vault, so, I thought it'd be a good idea to train her a bit more before we do." FL4K just…stared.

"That is a very foolish and dangerous idea that may result in her demise."

"Hey! I held my own on Athenas against Maliwan!" Ava exclaimed. "That's gotta count for something, right?"

"…okay, I will grant you that." Maliwan was apparently more trained than the COV was, though the cultists had the advantage of numbers and overwhelming their targets. "Still, it may not be a wise idea, unless she has the proper equipment and training to handle herself down there."

"Which is why Maya's training me!" Ava tried, and failed, to shoot the target again, the teen scoffing in ire. "This isn't working, though."

"Of course not," FL4K casually stepped over and plucked the gun from Ava's hands, examining it with their optic. "This firearm's too large for someone your size; the recoil will constantly throw your aim off, and considering this is a Dahl firearm, that is the absolute last thing you want."

"Oh…well I didn't know that," Maya cleared her throat. "What would you recommend for her, then? I only grabbed that 'cause Marcus was gonna throw it out."

"Hmm," FL4K reached down and tapped Ava's forearm, making a series of mental calculations. "Either a handgun, or a sub-machine gun. Both have minimal recoil and, therefore, will allow her to rarely miss her mark, at the expense of a reduction in damage. Here," FL4K pulled their handgun from their pocket, offering it to Ava. "Try this. It's Jakobs, so it should be up your alley." The teen accepted it and, after looking over the gun, turned to try firing again, squeezing the gun tight as the bullet spewed from the nozzle, striking the target dead on.

"Huh…didn't know Jakobs was so good," Maya mused. "Always stuck to Maliwan stuff back in the day…before they turned into evil assholes, that is."

"Even still, their firearms are useful," FL4K affirmed. "Elemental damages help to counter certain things, such as shock being useful in depleting enemy shield generators, and acid for eating through heavily armored enemies." Maya pursed her lips, clearly mulling on something.

"True…and…I might have an idea. You seem to be pretty decent with teaching, FL4K; you think you could take Ava for a patrol down on Promethea? Get her some hands-on experience? Because, honestly, it's either I take her with us to the Vault, or she'll find a way down there herself."

"It's true, I will." FL4K was concerned by that, but regardless, they had to process that.

"…so be it. I can take her to hunt some stragglers left behind by Maliwan. Should allow me to gauge where she stands so we know what to improve and what to abandon."

"Great! So, I'll leave you two it. I need to check in with Lilith about the battle strategy for tomorrow." Maya turned to leave and, when they looked back to Ava, FL4K saw the teenager was damn near quivering with excitement.

"Please quell that before we go." FL4K didn't want her to give away their position on the hunt. Not so soon, at least. Maybe once the Maliwan soldiers were sufficiently terrified.

* * *

FL4K wrenched their blade from another dead Maliwan soldier, flicking the body onto the pavement. The hunt was going well so far; despite Maliwan's head of mergers being deceased, there were still many of them on the planet, so either they were still going to continue the fruitless war, or they were simply trying to flee.

Either way, they were prey, and—

"WOO! Didja see that, Vault Hunter?!" They turned to see Ava standing over a soldier, hastily and clumsily reloading their clearly stolen SMG. "I got this guy good!"

"He's still alive." FL4K didn't hesitate to shoot the guy in his head with their handgun. "You should always double tap."

"…oh." She still seemed quite giddy. With the hunt done, FL4K moved on; there were more soldiers to cull.

"So…in your honest opinion," Ava walked alongside them. "Do you think I'll make a good Vault Hu—"

"No." FL4K didn't hesitate with their answer, earning a scowl from Ava.

"Why? I'm not good enough? I can train, Vault Hunter! A-And Maya's gonna show me the way—"

"That wasn't why I said no." FL4K reloaded their sniper rifle, setting it onto their back. "You would make a poor Vault Hunter because, logically, you shouldn't even become one. The circumstances don't add up."

"…oh." She sounded dejected now, the Beastmaster seeing her head was lowered and her pace slowed as well.

"Why do you want to be a Vault Hunter anyhow, Ava?"

"Because they're…cool, I guess. They do whatever they want, whenever they want, and don't let anyone stop them. They can travel across the whole galaxy, shootin', lootin' and...whatever, I guess." FL4K processed this. So, Ava ultimately sought freedom; freedom like none other. It was an admirable quality, but it was grossly misplaced.

"Ava," FL4K watched her lift her head. "Do you know why _I_ became a Vault Hunter?"

"I…don't know."

"To hunt and kill anyone and everyone. To slaughter and murder anything dumb enough to stand in my way and send them to Death. I don't do it for glamor, nor for finding Vaults; I just want to kill people. I don't want riches, nor to explore the galaxy; I just want bodies piled up." She was silent for a good, few minutes.

"…I…oh."

"There's more. As a Vault Hunter, I have scallions of people who want me and my cohorts dead in many different flavors; from the COV to Maliwan to even Hyperion in a sense. _Many_ want us dead, and if we slip up for even a moment, it will happen before we even have time to blink."

"But…Vault Hunters can…usually deal with that shit…right?" Now she was in disbelief. FL4K hated to shatter her ideology, but this was for the best.

"Did Maya tell you about Handsome Jack, and his siege on Pandora?" She nodded. "Did she tell you that, before her group, many Vault Hunters were called to the planet, and then were all systematically killed by Jack?" Her eyes widened. "I'm guessing she didn't; from what the archives I have state, she was almost killed initially as well. A train they were on was rigged with explosives and detonated in the tundra. By sheer luck, her and the other Vault Hunters survived, and naturally, went on to crush Jack, but that even happening was a literal one in a million chance. In all seriousness, she should have died on that train. " Now Ava was completely quiet. She was no doubt mulling over all of this. "However," Her head lifted. "This isn't meant to discourage you from trying, Ava; this is just me warning you that, unless you're ready, you'll meet Death yourself."

"And how would I know when I'm ready?"

"Honestly, you won't. I've run over every single possibility in my mainframe, and from what I've learned, there is no true way to know when you are ready. In laymen's terms, it's a leap of faith." Ava furrowed her brow at that.

"Sounds scary."

"It is; you either catch yourself and start shooting, or you die. There is no in-between. So, prepare and train all you can, Ava," FL4K came to a stop, pointing to a group of Maliwan soldiers who were, currently, trying to hastily load some supplies into a downed ship so they could flee the planet. "Because if you're truly dedicated to your cause of becoming a Vault Hunter, then you will have to leap. And if you miss, it's a long way down." She nodded and turned to start shooting at the soldiers, shouting a slew of profanities and curse words as she peppered them. FL4K watched all of this unfold, taking moments to provide assistance with their sniper if she wasn't watching her flank.

She had a long way to go if she ever planned to be a Vault Hunter and survive. FL4K saw potential in her, yes, but potential wouldn't be enough. She would need a good mentor to show her the ropes and ensure she was ready…they supposed it could be them.

Ava planned to follow in Maya's footsteps. They were big steps to fill, but the teenager would one day come to fill them. And, if the Beastmaster could help it, the Siren would be alive to see them filled.

That was for certain.

* * *

(Here's another non-canon, short chapter; one that follows my original plan in trying to "redeem" Ava's character and even humanize her a bit more, showing her lust to become a Vault Hunter is her trying to follow in Maya's footsteps. A bit cliché, yes, but from what I saw, they never really defined otherwise as to why she wanted to become one; she just…did. So, here's hoping this paints a bit of a better light on her; she's still annoying, yes, but by the end of this, I plan to at least make her tolerable. Someone fans can still detest but, at the very least, they can understand her a bit more. Who knows? Until then, here's a bit of the calm before the storm, because we all know what comes next. Something that may or may not go as intended.)


	18. Intermission and Explaination

So, brief update.

As many of you have seen, there wasn't a chapter last week and, sadly, nor will there be one this week. The lack of updates is because, last week, I had a slight mental breakdown over some stuff and spent the entire day freaking out about some college stuff. Was jarring, but I got things figured out and, am comfortable now.

As for this week, I've been preoccupied with some other projects and, unfortunately, ran out of time. That, and this chapter's supposed to be a _massive_ one, so naturally some additional time's gonna be needed. So, instead of leaving you all in the dark, I decided to slip in this little update and, in the process, clarify some stuff from the reviews.

-As many of you have noticed, the story won't follow the game word for word. This, of course, means some events might either be tweaked, revamped, and perhaps even wiped all together. So, as a result, expect the unexpected.

-I had Maya discuss her old team because, given how close they were in BL2 and the DLCs, it'd make sense for her to want to keep tabs on them, even with her quite far away. I'm confused as to why the devs didn't opt to include the old Vault Hunters in this game, but who knows? Worst case, they include them in DLCs.

-I'll do what I can to include more side-quests. Might be a good way for character development and give a bit more comedy.

I'll have the chapter done by next Thursday and, from there, resume regular update schedule unimpaired, unless something comes up. But, as it stands, the odds are a bit low of that, I hope.

Until then, everyone be safe, and have a good night!


	19. A Vault Rampaged

Honestly, Zane was a bit nervous over opening a Vault. Yeah, he was a Vault Hunter, which, literally in the title, suggested he was gonna open one sooner or later, but considering the stories about what dwelled within them, he mainly hoped he had the right tools for the job.

He definitely had the right people for the job. That was for damn sure.

The Operative headed for the bridge of the ship, holding the full, complete Vault Key in hand. Granted, he made sure to hold it with his gloved hand; he didn't really want to touch anything Tannis had recently handled, given her…well her weirdness.

She creeped him out still. Nothing was going to change that.

Arriving at the bridge, Zane was thankful to find the others there, including Maya and her little runt, too. The whole sibang was there. Even Holo-Rhys, still rocking that sweet mustache of his.

It grew on him. Heh…there's a funny.

"Great work, Vault Hunters," Lilith praised, standing with crossed arms and a smile on her face. "Maliwan won't forget the beating you gave 'em. Let's see the Calypsos try to spin that, especially with Maliwan damn near abandoning the planet in the process, too. But, more importantly, we've got an opening, and we're gonna take it. Now," Lilith turned her focus to Rhys. "Where's that Vault?"

"F-First off, I wanna say a little something, ahem. You guys saved my skin and the skins of, like, every Atlas employee…and skin's important…gotta stop saying skin…anyhow! The Vault! It's hidden underneath the Apollyon Transit Station."

"It's in the middle of the city?" Ava questioned. "How'd no one ever find it?"

"Lotta reasons, actually," Rhys retorted. "One's that the old Atlas corporation paved right over it! I found it when I took over, but I wasn't the one to pop the top on _that_ thing in a populated area. Reopening a Vault's…messy stuff, after all. A-And this is me speaking from personal experience. But, I'll leave that all up to you guys; with most of the population still off-world, the city's pretty empty. Until then, Rhys, OUT!" The hologram vanished. Least he made a decent exit.

"Alright, we'll have to move fast." Lilith spoke again. "We go in through the skyway by vehicle. Safest and fastest way."

"Got it," Maya added. "I'll take point with the Vault Hunters; help clear a way."

Lilith shook her head. "This one's mine. We're opening a Vault, Maya; you expect me to miss that? I can handle myself down there, Siren or not." She seemed indignant on the topic. Zane liked that, but he also knew she'd be smart to stay outta it.

"Lilith, we don't know what's down there." Maya shot back with an annoyed huff. "It could get ugly! You brought me back to the Raiders for a reason, and this is one of them."

"She's right, Lil'. It ain' gonna be easy, nor safe," Zane spoke up at last, the Operative feeling everyone's eyes on him. "Granted, nothin' fun's safe, but this'll be different. With Maliwan pullin' their boys out, it'll be nothin' but COV all the way there."

"Not to mention there's a high chance the Calypsos know where we are heading." FL4K added, the robot rubbing the head of their skag who…honestly looked a little bigger. Did that fucker become a Horned Skag?

"See? It'd be best for you to stick around here, Lilith, 'til you get your wings back. Then we're opening the next one together. I promise." Lilith seemed dejected and even a bit saddened by that.

"Augh…okay. This one's all you, Maya. Get whatever's in that Vault so we can get it away from the Calypsos."

"ALRIGHT, let's gear up—what should I bring?" Zane visibly cringed when Ava spoke up. She wanted to go with them? He damn sure hoped Maya told her no.

"Nope, stay with Lilith." He relaxed when she said that.

"Let her go," FL4K spoke up again. Zane's cringe returned with a vengeance. "She seeks to become a Vault Hunter through any means, Maya. Let us call this her leap of faith. Besides, if she stays in a vehicle and has a shield, she'll survive. Despite all odds, the COV are notoriously bad shots." Zane couldn't believe what he was hearing, and judging from the others, he wasn't alone.

"Are you fucking insane?!" Moze questioned. "COV'll kill her, FL4K."

"Yeah; I know she's down for a fight, but this one's not for her."

"It may or may not be; none of us known, except Fate and Death." The Beastmaster snapped their fingers, turning to leave the room, their pets joining them as, now, Zane saw they _all_ grew; the jabber was larger and armed with a shotgun, and the Spiderant was now on fucking _fire_. Zane went ahead and hoped that wouldn't lead to the seats getting damaged in the shuttle.

"…well, Ava," Maya shrugged. "Go find a gun and shield, then, and meet me down at the drop pod. Guess we're gonna have to take that."

"Does it come with barf bags?" The two of them walked off, and Zane started to follow suit, genuinely worried for once. He understood FL4K was sort of…crazy about these sorts of things but, plain and simple, Ava was a dumb kid and should be kept as far as possible from the battlefield. But it was said and done now…so…Zane was gonna hope, if she fucked up, he was at least close enough to mitigate the damage.

…or…rather _when_ she fucked up. He was being too generous with that if part.

* * *

"So, Apollyon Station's the last stop on the central line," Moze listened in on her ECHO as she boarded a Cyclone, turning it on. "Take the central arterial highway out of the city." The others were already beginning to move. Moze turned the ignition on and zoomed off after them, hearing Lorelei's voice in her ECHO.

"_Slag me, you're really openin' up the Vault?"_

"Fraid so. Kinda risky, but…" Moze shrugged, even though the coffee soldier couldn't see it. "Lilith says it's what we gotta do."

"_Well, good luck, and whatever you find in there…try not to lead it into the city."_

"Will do."

"_Uh, hey, heads up," _Rhys butted in, much to Moze's chagrin. _"Maliwan's fortified the access ramp. You'll have to get rid of 'em if you wanna get through. I'm sending Atlas forces that-a-way to support you!" _

"_You read my mind," _Lilith chimed in. _"Vault Hunters, secure the ramp and push through. Looks like this'll be a group effort this time." _Moze brought the Cyclone to a halt and dropped down, wasting no time in open firing at any Maliwan soldiers in sight. FL4K brought their technical to a halt, their skag leaping out and tackling a soldier.

"I taught Mr. Chew a new trick," FL4K spoke as they stepped down. Moze looked over just in time to watch the skag fling the screaming soldier in the air, who was grabbed by the jabber and, subsequently, pile drived into the ground. "Still needs works. Broodless forgets her part."

"What the fuck is her part in that?" Fiery web shot right past Moze's head, coating the downed and, now, screaming soldier. "…ah."

"Yep. But, for what it's worth, it's still a pretty sweet technique." FL4K snapped their fingers and pointed. Another soldier was subsequently yanked up and, of course, given the same treatment. Moze just…did her best to ignore the screaming Maliwan troops and went back to gunning them down. She knew they were dicks, yeah, but it was sort of overkill to pile drive them into the ground, then subsequently set them on fucking fire. But, then again, she did sort of the same.

"Oi, Mozzy Moze," Zane called from the back of his own technical. "Why ain'cha calling yer robot?"

"Not yet. Once we're ready." Besides, the soldiers were already dead. Moze dropped her spent mag and slammed a fresh one into her Dahl assault rifle, turning just in time to watch Zer0 cleave through the energy wall with his sword. It was…pretty impressive. With the way cleared, Moze tossed herself back in her Cyclone, firing it up and zooming down the cleared path.

"_What's up, chucklenuts? It's been a grip." _And there was Tyreen again. Oh good. _"Katagawa shit the bed, but you knew that already, all things considered. Troy's whining that we haven't opened the Vault yet, and I can't get properly laid 'cause I keep leeching my partners to death!" _Moze was convinced Tyreen was just venting at this point. Made sense. _"Oh, are you busy? Hopefully not opening the Vault, cause then we'd have to come kill you." _

"_Don't blame us for your absent sex life, queen bitch," _FL4K was at it again. _"Baffles me to begin with anyone would willingly lay with you outside of the intoxicated. And I think even they have enough better judgement." _And, like before, Tyreen was quiet.

"Good work, I guess." Moze muttered and sped her Cyclone up. She was legitimately glad FL4K was on their side, all things considered.

And she really needed to ask them why they thought it was a good idea to teach a jabber wresting moves.

* * *

Amara dropped down from the technical, looking up at the building in the distance. They'd arrived at the destination and, of course, Maya was ready and waiting, standing by a busted up Fast Travel station with Ava in tow.

"Hey badass," She called out. "You ready to crack open that vault?"

"I've been ready." Amara smirked. "Though I'm still concerned about bringing Ava with you, considering where we're heading."

"Your robot friend says she's good and I've seen them work, so I'll trust them." Maya mashed her finger to her earpiece. "Ellie, we'd like to make it to the Vault in one piece; you got something for me?"

"_Heh, I've been waitin' for you to say somethin' like that. Get ready for Project Double-D!" _Was…Ellie referring to a bra—

Her thoughts were interrupted when something digistructed nearby. For the most part, it looked like a heavily reinforced, toughed up Bandit Technical. Maya smirked and boarded it, motioning for Amara to get in as she secured herself. "Need you to drive, Amara; I need my hands free for what we're doing."

"Sure thing. Can't be harder than driving that piece of shit behind me." Amara climbed into the technical and floored it, turning the steering wheel and getting them moving for Apollyon Station.

"Hey, Amara, this thing got any tunes?" Maya asked. Amara checked the radio and raised a brow when weird, chill techno music played. "Heh, classic…this'll do."

"Hmm…it's new, to say the least. I like it." She grinned, though that faded when she heard some static from her ECHO.

"_Hey, superfan! What's the hurry?" _Tyreen was back at it. _"Going somewhere important? You wouldn't mind if—oh, I dunno—broadcast your location to every maniac on the planet? No? You sure? Cool, I was gonna do it anyway." _Amara frowned. Maya sighed.

"Don't worry about her, Amara, we got this. Just like on Athenas, right?" Amara's grin returned. "Here they come! Light 'em up!" Amara didn't hesitate to fire a barrel from the technical, slamming it into a bandit and watching them explode into bits. The car zoomed off the bridge and to the ground, Amara hearing the others following in their own vehicles as she launched barrel after barrel at the enemy Cyclones and technical.

"_Wooo! Eat that you fucking assclowns!" _Moze shouted, Amara looking over just in time to watch the Gunner atomize a Cyclone.

"Your friend's quite the shot." Maya chuckled. "Reminds me of Salvador…back in the glory days."

"Chin up," Amara looked over her shoulder, flashing a smile. "That day'll come again. Always does."

"Yeah. So, let's keep moving so we live to see that day." Amara nodded and, prompty, swerved left to avoid a speeding Cyclone; said vehicle being atomized by one of Maya's blasts.

It didn't take a long time to reach the station, though upon delving within, Amara frowned when she saw…well plain and simple, there was a bigass hole in the wall, and she smelt an odor of urine and insanity.

The COV beat them there.

"Damnit," Ava called. "They're already here!"

"_That's right, you dumb shart-tarps," _And there was Tyreen, right on cue. _"We've had our followers combing the city for the Vault since before you got here." _

"_Tch, idiots. Did you really think you were going to beat us to it?" _

"No," FL4K answered, Amara stepping to the side as the Beastmaster walked past. "But you did just clear the way for us, and considering we have the key, your followers just saved us quite a bit of effort. So, thank you; I'll be sure to give your followers a merciful death before I open the Vault."

"_J-Just shut up!"_

"How about you come make me, bitch boy leech? Oh, that's right, you can't. You come within five feet of me, I'll hang you by those sorry excuses you call gauges and let my jabber pelt you with his leavings." FL4K ended the transmission, leaving Amara, once again, stupefied by her friend's sass towards the Calypsos. "Let's get a move on. That should leave them fuming long enough to give us ten minutes of radio silence."

"Then let's not waste it." Zane spun the barrel for his handgun and pressed on, as did the others.

Amara's fears of opening the Vault were eradicated; now she wanted to open it purely to spite the Calypsos and deny them the thing they slaved over for so long. It was going to be a magnificent feeling.

* * *

FL4K wrenched their blade from another, dead Eridian. They expected these so-called alien guardians to make for better sport, but alas and alack, they fell just like everything else they fought. They'd be disappointed, but FL4K focused on the positives to the situation; the more of these Eridians they slaughtered, the less they had standing between them and the Vault.

They just wished Mr. Chew would stop trying to eat them. They were going to have to put that skag on a diet.

"How close are we to the Vault now?" FL4K turned towards Maya, the older Siren proceeding down the tunnel, Ava in tow.

"Not too far, from what I'm guessing," She looked about, SMG at the ready. "And it looks like there aren't anymore Guardians or COV to stop us. Looks like we're clear."

"So, straight shot to the Vault, then?" Zane sat on a rock nearby, trying on a new, wrist mounted handgun he ripped from the arm of a dead cultist. "I'm lovin' this murder spree, but the sooner we get that thing the Calypsos are lookin' for, the sooner we can get outta here 'fore they flood this place with their goons."

"What? Scared of some more bandits, old man?" Moze teased. Zane scowled.

"I ain' keen on bein' up to me balls in bodies, Mozzy Moze. Ain' a good look…also blood's a bitch to get outta me coat." The Beastmaster let them banter as they continued on, reloading their sniper as the tunnel widened out gradually, as did the scenery.

Now, they stood in what looked like a desecrated, clearly abandoned temple, with statues of those Eridians settled about…this was clearly the place.

FL4K assumed as much when their optic focused on the massive, archway across the room. The sigil for Vaults and, in a sense, the sigil for Vault Hunters.

"Get ready," Maya approached the arch, weapon at the ready as Ava hung back. "The creature the Eridians sealed inside the Vault has been sleeping for millennia. It's gonna be pissed when we wake it up."

"Good. I came all this way for a proper challenge; If I don't get one, I'm going to take my frustration out on all the COV on the surface."

"I won't stop ya. But, here," Maya neared the archway, the Beastmaster's hand going up when she tossed over the Vault Key. "Put the key in the pedestal right in front of it…and get ready for a fight."

"So be it," FL4K set the key within said pedestal, hearing their beasts corral close to them. "The hunt has led me to this moment…and now we shall send a greater bounty to Death."

"Alright, here we go—" Maya was cut off as the arch lit up, and _something_ leapt out. It was a horrendous, hideous looking creature, said beast slamming its hands into the ground and letting out a hideous roar.

"Unleash hell!" Radiation crackled on their hand as, in a flash, all three beasts were enlarged and irradiated, barreling towards the creature and swarming it. Moze was already within Iron Bear, peppering the beast where she could as Zane and Amara did the same.

"What the actual fuck is this thing?!" Moze asked amid shots, FL4K backpedaling close to her and taking potshots at the creature's legs to cripple and slow it.

"I think the texts called it 'The Rampager'," Maya called, taking cover behind a pillar in the room as her and Ava fired as well. "Pretty accurate, if you ask me."

"Yeah, no kiddin'!" Zane called, slamming down his Barrier and open firing. "Don' let it get close; I'd hate to see what hands like those do to a person—WHOA SHITE!" A large rock slammed into the ground nearby. FL4K looked up to see the ceiling was collapsing as well; the beasts rampage, pun intended, was going to inevitably destroy the room they stood in.

"I got an idea!" Amara sprinted past FL4K, the Siren slamming her fists together before shooting them forward. Her Astral arms shot out to slam into the Rampager just as it flung away Meat-Thief, the Eridian guardian reeling and letting out an enraged screech. The Beastmaster quickly recalled their beasts when their boost ran out, motioning for them to take cover where they could as they continued to pepper the creature from where they were behind Moze's Iron Bear.

At least, until, a strange, cyan dome encompassed the Rampager. And cyan, flame like wisps drifted towards it.

"Um…what the fuck are those?" Moze asked.

"I dunno, but we should shoot them." Maya answered, open firing at them and popping one like a balloon. The others did the same, swiftly, FL4K's optic widening when they saw the creature's body beginning to grow and expand, as if it were getting larger.

And turning into more of a monster, if such a thing were possible.

"That…that can't be good, can it?" Zane asked.

"It can't." Amara raised her arms to block a hit; the Rampager's fist colliding with her and sending the Siren flying back, though thankfully, Maya was there to break her fall via Phaselocking.

"Thanks, Maya," The older siren released her and resumed peppering the creature, Amara doing the same as FL4K saw the beast was reeling, and after a series of rocket shots to its head, courtesy of Moze, it finally slumped over and fell dead.

They had just killed an Eridian guardian, and FL4K never felt better.

"Yes, YES! THIS is what it means to hunt!" Their blade was out as they approached the fallen creature, cleaving through its head to rip out a fang they pocketed. And now they had a worthy trophy; proof of a mighty kill! "Now, let us see what awaits in the Vault."

"You do that," Maya looked over the corpse, kicking it with her foot. "We'll stay out here and watch for reinforcements. I'll radio you if the COV decide to have their boys come running." The Beastmaster nodded and, joined by their team, stepped through the swirling portal.

FL4K wondered what loot they would find within such a place…hopefully another sniper. Then again, would the Eridians even have snipers, considering they were supposed to be a highly advanced race…?

* * *

"Well, least we didn't miss it." Ava smiled to herself, looking over the dead body of that weird ass creature the Vault Hunters throttled. Sure, she didn't get the killing blow, probably, but she at least helped, and that's what sorta mattered. "Thanks for letting me come down here, Maya."

"Thank the Vault Hunter, really," Her mentor checked her ECHO, keeping an eye out. "Honestly, I was going to leave you with Lilith."

"Heh, glad you didn't. I'd just follow you down here."

Maya sighed. "I'm well aware…you really need to listen more, Ava. I'm still new at this whole mentor thing, but everything I do is to protect and help you."

"Yeah…yeah, you're right." The teen sighed. "Thanks for not chucking me off a cliff, also."

"Welcome. Thanks for not actually stealing my book. It's practically worthless."

"…it is?" Ava suddenly felt a chill wash over her. Something was very, VERY wrong.

"Well, look who did all the hard work for us," She whirled around and practically went pale. The Calypsos were standing right there, a few cultists with them, all aiming at the two of them. "Didn't think you could get any dumber, but hey, miracles happen, sometimes. Just ask the Make-A-Wish Foundation."

"Ava, get behind me." She did as asked and stepped behind Maya, the Siren keeping her gun at the ready.

"Yeah, looks like you did all the hard work for us; you Vault Hunters only think with your trigger fingers, don't you?" Troy smirked, crossing his arms and leaning against the dead creature.

"Yep; keep this up and I'll be a god for real!" Troy's face fell.

"Uh—WE'LL be gods."

"That's what I said. Now…let me do my thing." Ava's eyes widened.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" She exclaimed, despite Maya trying to shush her up.

"Taking what's ours." Troy smarmily declared. "See, the monsters don't protect the power of the Vaults. They _are_ the power of the Vaults. And by you killing it for us, you literally did all the work for us and then some."

"And now," Tyreen grinned. "All the power's mine."

"Hey, save any for the 'parasite'?" Tyreen rolled her eyes and dropped down, locking her arm with Troy's. Ava's fear grew as she saw those tattoos glow, and Troy looked even more…demented. As if he was getting stronger.

"We're leaving, now." Maya whispered. Ava wanted to say a lot of things, like how badly she wanted to kick their asses…but she agreed. She could handle Maliwan, yeah, but two Sirens? Not a chance.

"Oh, did I say you could go?" Tyreen snapped and the cultists all aimed at them. "And who's the brat? You, I get, Maya, but what's her deal?" Fear clung to Ava, the teen moving a bit more behind Maya.

"She's no one," Her mentor said. "I'm your problem."

"Oh, I know. That's why _neither_ of you are leaving this place." Tyreen vanished in a spire of fire. Ava turned just in time to feel a hand clench her neck, the teen panicking as she realized the bitch was holding her up, still wearing that grin the entire time.

"Ava!" Maya clenched her hand and, in a flash, Phaselocked Troy, yanking him over to her and locking him in a neck hold. "Put her down, right now." She hissed. Ava saw Tyreen's grin leave her face and, thankfully, her grip slackened, causing the teen to land on her side, coughing and gasping.

"That's what I thought—" Ava looked over and, now, felt more afraid than ever.

Troy's hand was on Maya's forearm, and he was draining her, like his cunt of a sister did to so many others!

"Maya!" She could literally see the life draining from her face…that sick bastard was going to kill her…and then the Vault Hunters, and—

_**Click.**_

Her eyes darted down to her Maliwan handgun; the gun she used to help fight her way down here. It must've fallen loose from her hoodie in the struggle. Her hand went for it, grabbing it just as pain shot up her side, the teen hitting the ground as she realized Tyreen casually knocked her out the way. Her gaze was on Maya the entire time, seeing more and more life drain from her mentor's face…she didn't have much time left. If she shot Troy, then Maya would live…but…she was scared. Scared shitless. Her hands trembled as she held the gun, tears steaming down her face as she watched Maya get weaker and weaker.

"…_in laymen's terms, it's a leap of faith." _FL4K's words echoed in her head. This was it! This was her leap of faith!

But…was she ready to take it?

_**BAM!**_

"OW! FUCK!" Troy's hand let go of Maya's and went to clamp down on his metal one, sporting a rapidly growing, acidic hole. Maya collapsed to the ground, huffing and panting, as Tyreen's gaze snapped to her.

"Kill the brat." Ava's eyes darted to the cultists, the men approaching her, guns at the ready…and so she started shooting.

"…_you either catch yourself and start shooting, or you die." _FL4K's voice once again played in her head as she emptied her clip, watching the cultists drop to the ground, either clutching their wounds or outright dead. The teen scrambled to grab one of the fallen shotguns, hefting up the clunky weapon and—

"Bitch!" She felt something ensnare her. She couldn't move, and she could barely breathe! Looking around, she quickly realized she was locked in a bubble of Siren energy…Maya's Phaselock.

"I thought you could only take from me." Her eyes snapped to Troy, seeing his tattoos glowing, and a demented smirk on his face. Tyreen was next to him, the bitch crossing her arms as her brother shrugged.

"I guess it's…any Siren. Including me."

"C'mon, we got what we came for. Leave the brat to get mauled by our boys." Ava felt herself get lifted higher before pain raced through her body, the teen feeling numb as her eyes stared up at the ceiling. She was clearly on her back, no doubt having been slammed into the ground…and everything ached.

"Sorry, kiddo," She watched Tyreen walk into view, kneeling next to her with her grin returned. "Looks like you didn't have what it took. But, hey, look at the bright side. Least you and Maya over there can get torn apart by our boys. You have that going for you." She disappeared from view, Ava hearting distorted footsteps before a _woosh_ shot through her ears…they were gone…and she was gonna die.

…she had no business being a Vault Hunter. She leapt…and she fell.

Gunshots rang out; for a moment, she thought she was dead, until she saw the corpse of a cultist fall next to her, and to feel hands scoop her up, Ava turning her head to see she was being supported by FL4K.

"She's stable. Took some head trauma, but she's stable." Their voice was muffled, but at least she could hear it. When FL4K turned, she saw Amara was helping Maya up, relief flooding her when she saw her mentor was still breathing…that sick bastard didn't kill her.

"Let's get back to the ship. These two need medical attention and…" Ava tuned out. Darkness crept in the corners of her vision as, at last, she succumbed to her pain and blacked out.

* * *

(So, here's a twist. I had to _really_ tweak this scene, so it fit the idea I had in mind, but I hope this newer outcome isn't considered unfavorable to fans. But I saw so many reviewers speaking about this and wondering how I was going to handle Maya's death in the game. I came up with my own rendition; one that fits into the redemption of Ava, and something else altogether. It's not perfect, no, but I personally feel it'll work more for the retelling I'd like. So, enjoy.

Also, as the intermission stated, sorry for the lack of a chapter next week. Hope this one compensated for my mental breakdown.)


	20. Where there were four

"Well…how is she?" Zane, for once, wasn't in a good mood. It took a metric fuck ton to knock him out of his chipper mood but, as he stood in Tannis' lab, Maya's unconscious body on the operating table with his friends surrounding him, he could safely say his good mood was dashed.

Dashed, killed, and buried, too.

"Well," The weirdo scientist muttered, typing furiously at a tablet before looking up. "For the most part, she's stable. Some abnormal coloration of the skin, luscious lips, and trim body…she's certainly an—"

"Didn' ask for…whatever the _fuck_ that was." Zane grimaced. Tannis pouted.

"Spoilsport. Ahem…Maya's stable; vitals are minimal but, considering what she went through, that in itself is a miracle." The Operative rolled his eyes.

"Shoulda known the kid shouldn' have gone with her."

"The outcome would have been far worse, then." FL4K spoke up. "Ava's actions led to Maya surviving the Calypsos, as opposed to perishing at their hands. She was not a stellar fighter, but—"

"But, maybe, her being there made things a little worse." Moze added, shaking her head. "I'm not gonna sit here and point fingers, though. Maya's alive…powerless…but alive. That's better than dead and…well, fucking dead." Zane couldn't agree more.

"Lil' already knows, right?"

"Informed her myself." Amara sighed. "She wasn't too keen on hearing the Calypsos got to her…" Amara sounded dejected. Zane could imagine why, considering another Siren had her powers stolen.

"We'll get 'em back, Mara Mar. Ain' gonna be hard, at the rate we're at. We know where the next Vault is, and we know just what the damn twins want. So, we just need to figure out a way to get rid of the Vault creature…aaaaaaand make sure they don't get the key, of course."

"Of…course…" The Operative went rigid and looked over, seeing Maya's eyes were open, head tilted to the side so she could look at the four of them. "We can't…let the…twins win."

"Be silent, Maya, save your strength." FL4K spoke, leaning down to pat the depowered Siren's side.

"Where's…Ava…?"

"In her room, she took quite the thrashin'." Zane chipped in. "She'll be fine, though. Might not be all there upstairs from this but…part of bein' a Vault Hunter." Maya sighed, shaking her head a bit.

"…I could have done more." She sighed, the Operative hearing her voice was on the verge of breaking. "Done something differently…and now, she's hurt, and my powers are…are gone."

"I mean…so are Lil's but…" Zane went quiet. He wanted to say the commander was coping fine without her powers, but he knew damn well that was FAR from the case. "It's gonna be fine, though. Me mates and I'll fix this shit." He thought that'd fix things, but, unfortunately, Maya still wore a somber expression.

"…I just…still can't…can't believe my powers are gone. And the Calypsos are that much stronger. Your four won't be a match, and…well you're the only Vault Hunters we have who can help."

"Not anymore." Zane was already reaching for his handgun, turning towards the door to see someone standing there. A brown-haired guy dressed in…an outfit that reminded him a lot of Moze's, except more rugged. And, on his back, was some sort of folded up turret. "It's been a while, Maya…you're looking…different. Did you get rid of your tattoos?" The former Siren looked at the guy, eyes widening in clear realization.

"A-Axton? But…how—"

"I called him." Zane cut her off. "Did Moxxi a favor, and as much as I hate to put it, these twins are a pain in me dick…so it'd be good to get some more of us to help deal with 'em, so to speak."

"Yep! Ain't just me, though," Axton motioned behind him. "Gaige's dropped me off with a stolen Maliwan ship. She's off to get the others…or at least anyone she can find. But, regardless, we're here to give you a hand, Maya, just like old times. Who knows? We might even stick around…saw Moxxi's got the bar running, and she probably cleared my tab." Zane saw Maya was trying her best to be happy, but that smile was a lie…she was still torn up about losing her powers.

That wasn't going to last; like what he told Lilith, they were gonna get 'em back for her. And, now, it just meant he wouldn't feel bad about breaking Troy's legs.

…granted, that was gonna happen regardless, but…Zane didn't enjoy beating up cripples.

* * *

(So, significantly shorter chapter. I was tempted to give it a rest for a moment and let people digest the stuff in the last chapter, but I opted to instead push this one out, as a form of falling action, so to speak, and to do the thing many sought. After this, I plan to get back into the action and introduce everyone to Eden-6, where things will REALLY get heated, as players know what to find and expect there. Until then, take care.)


	21. Gunk and Gunpowder: Welcome to Eden-6!

"So, ya used to run with Maya and her lot back in the day," Zane walked alongside Axton as the two of them made their way to the bridge, where Lilith called a meeting with all Vault Hunters. Technically, despite the guy's time away, he counted for such a criteria, and thus the Operative brought him. "If ya don' mind me askin', how were things back then? Helluva lot better than now?"

"Eh, not really," Axton shook his head with a grimace. "Hyperion basically had, like, ALL of Pandora under their foot. And Jack was determined to make sure everyone knew it. Just went around killing anyone who wasn't on his side, or who didn't beg to be on his side. However, comparing him to these new guys Moxxi filled me in on, I'd prefer him."

That made Zane raise a brow. "Oh? Why's that?"

"Jack was at least charismatic; sometimes he gave me a chuckle but, at the same time, I still wanted to punch him in his balls. These new guys? Haven't given one chuckle; I've just been hearing them talk shit for the last few weeks…like a few moments ago." Zane nodded in agreement; the Calypsos tried to berate and insult them for letting them get the Vault's power and for siphoning Maya's power, but the Operative was over it, namely because they knew where to go next, and he didn't plan on letting those two walnuts get it first.

In a situation like this, not responding was a good idea; gave those assclowns less ammo to use against them.

Stepping onto the bridge, the older gentleman saw his mates were already on the bridge, Lilith looking out the window into the…well blackness of space. She had a dejected, troubled look on her face, one that made the Operative a touch concerned.

Last time she had such an expression was when her own powers got siphoned. A day the Operative did well not to bring up to her.

"So, Lil," Zane spoke up, feeling everyone turn to look at him and Axton. "Our next move? Cause I hate to be that guy, but the longer we sit 'round and wait, the more time the twins got to head to Eden-6 and get a jumpstart on finding that key."

"I know it's just…" She sighed. "Maya's lost her powers too; I'm thankful she isn't dead, all things considered…but…because of me, she's just _like_ me, now."

"It's not because of you," Amara shook her head. "It's the damn twins. But, don't worry, we'll get her powers back. Yours too."

"Yeah…but what if we can't? I should've known opening the Vault would backfire…and now those monsters are even stronger. Just…augh…I should have thought everything through."

"Then do so." FL4K spoke up. "While Maya is depowered, she still lives, and therefore, you can amend this situation. You've made a mistake, but it isn't too late to learn from it, and never let it come to pass again."

Lilith sighed, but nodded regardless. "I'll try. For now," She looked over at Axton. "Glad to see you're in good health, Axton. I wasn't sure what happened to you after Pandora quieted down."

"I made a quiet exit, though it looks like things've gotten pretty loud in my time away." The Commando rubbed the side of his head. "What's the deal with this COV, anyhow? Cause…rallying, like, _all_ the bandits together? Didn't know that was even possible."

"Times have changed," Lilith sighed. "But, more or less, their leaders are both Sirens, and have been using their power to get people on their side. And, because of this, they're incredibly powerful."

"Psh, that Vault monster we fought was stronger," Axton grinned. "But, like I've told your friend here, we're getting together to help you out, commander. Gaige's gonna see where Sal and Krieg went; I'd wager they're still on Pandora, but there's no telling with that angry midget…a-also, don't tell him I called him a midget if and when we see him; he'll punch me in the balls again." Zane liked Axton's outlook. Reminded him of how he was in his younger days.

"Regardless," Moze finally spoke up. "When are we making the jump to Eden-6?"

"In a few minutes. So, do what you can, and get ready. Axton, take all the time you need to get prepared."

"Gotcha, commander." The Commando turned and walked off, the rest of the Vault Hunters doing the same as Zane got moving to visit Moxxi's bar.

"_Vault Thief! Heeey, good news!" _Zane's grin faded when he heard that bitch in his earpiece. _"Troy's learned how to phaselock stuff, so we've been chucking shit at the followers all day. Pretty fun; thanks again for your friend's powers!"_

"_Yeah; though, give or take, we'll be getting some more powers soon enough, once we open that Vault on Eden-6. Or, we can just let you idiots do all the work for us." _Troy snidely remarked as well. They were pissing him off; that was a new one.

"Y'know FL4K can hear us, right?" Zane said.

"_That I can," _Said Beastmaster joined in. _"And it seems like you two have forgotten your last, verbal beating."_

"_Psh, whaddya got—"_

"_How's your arm? I hear corrosive damage's pretty bad for machinery." _

Troy was quiet.

"_That's what I thought," _FL4K's voice sounded amused. _"You went there to kill Maya and Ava. Instead, you siphoned Maya's power, yes, but she's alive, and a teenager wounded you. So, you got lucky. Luck is pointless on a hunt. And luck won't save you from what I plan to do to your cadaver once you're dead." _Now the twins were quiet. Zane made a note to buy FL4K a drink in thanks.

…wait…could that robot drink? Questions for later…

* * *

Moze stood on the bridge as the ship reached the aerospace of Eden-6; a planet she heard a lot about but, up until now, never ventured to. Naturally, this was because of the 'on the run from Vladof' thing, but…details.

The planet itself, as far as she saw, was an odd, sickly green planet, that seemed like a small moon for another planet. It was a bit disconcerting, but if it worked, it worked.

"So, how're we doing this?" She asked Lilith. "Are we piling in the drop ship or…taking Ellie's pod?"

"Pod, unfortunately." The former-Siren responded. "Mostly because, if the COV are swarming that planet, then the last thing we need to do is give them a target. And the Maliwan ship'll stand out like a vegan psycho."

The Gunner frowned. She _hated_ that pod. But, she wasn't going against orders. Not in this instance, at least.

"Will it at least be a softer ride?"

Lilith nodded, turning away from the window and heading for the door. "It will. Ellie's done some work to, at the very least, cushion the fall. So, it shouldn't be as horrible as it was on Promethea." That was reassuring.

"While I have time," Moze asked, hurrying to follow along with Lilith. "And where will that Axton guy be? Squeezed in with us?"

"He'll be dropped elsewhere. While yeah, it'd be fun to have all five of you ramming bullets down the COV's throat, I need him to run recon on his own. Get a lay of the land and figure out just how much of a hold the COV has on Eden-6."

"Fair point; intel's always a must in these situations." Moze also figured Lilith was just taking FL4K's advice and getting a full scope of the AO before making a major play.

Arriving in the drop bay, Moze saw the others were already there: Zane was nursing from a bottle of scotch, Amara was browsing the nearby vending machine for any new items, and FL4K was loading a shotgun for their larger jabber.

"You guys ready?" Lilith asked.

"Yep."

"Mhm."

"The hunt commences."

"Alright," The commander tapped the side of the pod. "Go ahead and get in. We'll drop you four at the safest spot we can find, but from there, it'd be smart to keep a low profile 'til you don't need to." The moment the pod was opened, FL4K's jabber was the first inside, the Beastmaster climbing in and settling in their spot as Moze did the same, clutching her assault rifle for dear life as the others got inside and the pod sealed up.

"Ah, this shall be a hunt like none before," FL4K sighed, patting their ape's head. "Eden-6, my revisit to this swampy hunting grounds."

"…wait…swampy?" Moze asked.

"Yes, swampy," FL4K nodded. "Eden-6, more or less, is a mire of a planet. Think of the worst swamp you've ever been to and make it an entire planet. _That_ is Eden-6. And the fauna? Dangerous, massive reptilian predators! What fun!"

"…" Moze was just silently and internally screaming. That worsened when the pod lurched and she clutched herself, shuddering.

She flinched when she felt a hand clench itself around hers, the Gunner looking over at Amara who wore a reassuring look. "It's gonna be okay, Moze," She said, the Gunner feeling herself slacken a bit. "We'll be fine, okay?"

"Y-Yeah, I guess." She sighed, resting her head on the headrest as, for once, she felt…okay, in the drop ship, something she hadn't felt before.

Amara was good at reassuring her. That was…unexpected. But it wasn't unwelcome in the slightest.

* * *

"Right, so THIS is Eden-6." Amara stood with crossed arms atop a cliffside, overlooking the…well for lack of a better word, utter shithole.

Much of the ground was covered in muck, and the parts that weren't were covered in swamp water. The air smelled rank, forcing her to generally breathe through her mouth for the most part, the Siren wanting slightly to throw up in her mouth.

It also didn't help that, below, she could see a few beasts roaming about; large, bipedal reptilian creatures. One, to make matter worse, was engrossed in eating a bandit down below as well…so at least the COV was dinner for the wildlife.

"Ah, here we are! Eden-6!" She looked over at FL4K who stood with their sniper at the ready, seeming more…chipper than usual. "It's been so long, and now there's more prey to hunt here."

"At least you're in a good mood." Amara said, wincing and covering her nose again. "I can't get used to the smell of this shithole…makes me envious you don't have a nose."

"I have smell receptors, Amara. They pick up the scent and process it into a format or 'code' my core can understand. And, yes, it smells quite rank here. You get used to it after a time. More importantly," The Beastmaster shouldered their sniper, dropping to a knee as, without missing a beat, they fired two shots, lifting the rifle and pointing down. "We should begin our hunt for the key, and this time, ensure the COV do not get a chance to interfere in our efforts."

"And when the chance's right, we're slapping the shit outta those twins, right?" Amara punched her palm, a grin on her face as the robot nodded in agreement.

"Of course, though don't damage the heads too much; I _do_ plan on hanging them on the wall back at Sanctuary, after all." Amara nodded in agreement. Eden-6 wasn't the most ideal place, no, but at least this time, the COV didn't have a complete hold on the planet, as compared to Promethea. So, it meant her and the others had a chance to actively offset those fuckers' plans.

…offset their plans, and get Maya's powers back, too. She'd be damned if she'd let those monsters keep those powers. And she'd be _very_ damned if she let them take hers, too.

It was a fear she had, but thankfully, it was one she'd put to rest soon enough.

* * *

(Weirder chapter, but, now, welcome to Eden-6, the dank ass swamp planet! I had planned to include a FL4K PoV here but had to let it slide namely due to time constraints. Does mean next chapter I can go all out, but enjoy this. I'm also loving all the support, once again, that this story's gained. I won't say I'm better than Gearbox's current writing team, but I _will_ say I'm doing what I can to tie up loose ends they've left behind as best I can. I'm not perfect at it, no, but I can say I'm doing a good job considering all the fav's and reviews.

Do I want Gearbox seeing this? Eh, not really sure. On one hand, it'd be flattering if they enjoyed it, but on the other, they'd probably just glance over it and think nothing of it, considering it's just fanfiction.

So, in conclusion, I'm thankful you all are digging this story so much, and I'm going to see this to completion. Who knows? Might end up on TvTropes. That'd be swell.)


	22. Bayou Blastin!

Zane was honestly mixed about Eden-6. On one hand, it was a cool, little swamp planet, with badass wildlife, a good sense of community, and enough remoteness to where even the worst criminals could safely hide out without retribution. But, on the other hand…it smelled _rank_ and it burned his nose to inhale each time. Sure, one'd get used to it, but until he did, he grimaced each time he inhaled as he and the others walked along the soggy path, having recently gotten themselves down from the cliffside their pod crashed.

"Oi, FL4K," The Operative asked. "How do ya avoid from gettin' much in ya shoes? Cause…there's some in mine. It don' feel good."

"Space your footsteps out and walk on drier patches. That way, you prevent from the mud settling." Least the robot was having fun.

"_Vault Hunter! Welcome!" _Zane raised a brow when he heard an old, suave voice speak up in his earpiece. Sure wasn't anyone he met before…not recently, at least. _"I wish I could give y'all the proper Jakobs Welcome, but those COV devils are everywhere. Me, and a few survivors are holed up in my family's lodge, but supplies ain't lookin' good, and we're surrounded. I need your help." _The call ended, and judging from the looks the others had, Zane wasn't the only one to get it.

"Anyone know who that was?" Moze asked.

"No," Zane responded. "But that last name, I do know that. Jakobs. Pretty decent gun makers, aside from the fact their shit doesn' shoot very fast. But, then again, usually don' take more than one or two shots."

"I assume you've done business for the Jakobs Corporation?" Amara questioned.

Zane shrugged. "One or two jobs, and this was 'bout two decades ago. Nothin' serious…except for gettin' rid of some thieves." It was easy work, though. But boring at the same time, unfortunately.

"Who are you," FL4K spoke into their ECHO. "And where is this estate?"

"_For the latter, I can mark it on y'all's ECHOs. And for the former…well, obviously, I'm part of the Jakobs Corporation; Wainwright Jakobs, actually. I usually like to shake a man's hand while introducin' myself, but…I suppose that'll come later." _

"It's always better to meet someone face to face. And, considering how you speak of the Corporation, you're one of the higher ups?"

"_You could say that. But, still, I'd like to have a pleasant chant with y'all, but—" _A shot rang out on the other end, followed by a shotgun blast. _"And stay down, ya damn varmint! Apologies for my tone, but…I'll resume garrisonin'. Get here when y'all can." _The call ended again and they kept moving, Zane being the first to notice they were nearby a Catch A Ride station, the Operative being the first to trot over and digistruct a Technical.

"Alright, I'll drive. Y'all get in the back, keep an eye out for—" Zane heard an explosion nearby, turning to see the wreckage of an Outrunner, Amara casually reloading her rocket launcher and setting it on her back.

"The COV work fast. Thought we'd beat them here, all things considered." She mused with a frown. "But, then again, that bitch can just teleport them…so that's fun."

"Least you atomized that asshole." Moze smirked, already climbing in the back, as did FL4K and their pet who was currently chewing on what looked like a rock…damn monkey.

"C'mon, Mara Mar. Sooner we help this Wainwright guy the sooner we can get to work." The Siren hopped in and Zane floored it, relaxing himself as he did his best to navigate through the swamp with the truck that, clearly, wasn't meant for swampy environments.

…then again, considering his time on Pandora, Zane doubted Technicals could really handle any environment…

* * *

"Ugh…it's so…fucking humid here…" Moze groaned, shaking the moisture out her helmet as the old man rounded another bend, the Gunner swearing under her breath as she caught her helmet when it bounced out her hands. "Why is it so fucking humid!?"

"We're in a swamp, Moze," FL4K spoke up, the Gunner looking to see them take a potshot at a COV fuck in the distance. "Swamps are naturally very humid and moist. If anything, it would be a wise move not to wear your helmet, else it just provides irritation."

"I ain't ditching my helmet, FL4K." She frowned. "It means too much to me. Too much."

"How so?"

She sighed and tossed them the helmet. "Read the inscription along the interior. Cause, if you hadn't guessed, that isn't my helmet. Not the one I was issued."

"No…it belonged to someone named…Cyrus? Who is Cyrus?"

"Who _was_ Cyrus, actually." She sighed, resting her back against the Technical. "He was one of the few guys during my Vladof days I actually liked…and, as I said before…"

"He did not survive Darzaran Bay." FL4K concluded. Moze nodded. "The way you word it, you two were intimate with one another."

"That's…a fancy way to put it. Let's not discuss that part." She didn't' want to talk about her love life. "But, that's why I don't wanna ditch my helmet."

"I can understand the sentimental value in it, but I never told you to abandon it. Simply leave it in the Technical."

"…oh." Moze pursed her lips. "I…see."

"It's fine. But, if you wish to wear it here and not deal with the humidity causing discomfort, adjust it a bit so it allows for more airflow. Just a suggestion." FL4K tossed the helmet back and Moze accepted it, putting it back on just as Zane brought the Technical to a close.

"This is as far as we go with a car," She heard the old man say, Zane stepping down and motioning to a large ledge. "We're walkin' from here."

"_THE GREAT VAULT BECKONS! JAKOBS WILL __**BLEEED**__!" _Moze winced when she heard that utter bullshit in her ear. Seems a psycho was screaming into an ECHO somewhere close.

"Seems like we should hurry." Amara leapt out the Technical and easily climbed the ledge, the others doing the same as the team got moving, mauling through any bandits stupid enough to get in their way.

"_You just keep going, don'tcha, Vault Thieves?" _And there was Tyreen. Now Moze was just annoyed. _"Have you considered, I dunno, laying down and dying? Your Siren friend almost did it, but then you had the spoil the fun." _

"Ignore her, Moze," FL4K called from further ahead. "She's attempting to, poorly, intimidate you." The Gunner nodded and kept moving, reaching the steps to the estate, where, of course, there were a multitude of bandits trying to get in. Bandits that, swiftly, were dealt with when Moze called out Iron Bear.

_**BLAM!**_

She turned her mech around to see the front doors fly open, and for a bandit carcass to splatter against the ground. Standing in the doorway was a well-dressed, older man, holding a Jakobs shotgun in hand. Said older man turned to give two other bandits the same treatment in rapid succession; he handled that shotgun quite well.

"Thank y'all for comin'," He said, loading a few more shells into his shotgun. "I wanted to tidy up a lil' 'fore I got company, but these damn devils made that hard to do."

"The COV sorta make everything hard," Moze dropped from Iron Bear as it was digistructed back to the ship. Brushing herself off, the Gunner walked up the stairs and onto the patio, joining the others on it. "You're Wainwright, correct?"

"Indeed I am, ma'am, course, my name's all I got left." He sighed. "Damn devils took everythin' else. Come on in; I'll explain more where we're safer." She was…mixed on this Wainwright guy, but for the most part, he was alright. "Also, can ya make sure that dam jabber doesn' make a mess? Blood's easier to clean up than jabber shit."

"…your pet's potty trained, right?" Moze asked FL4K as they stepped into the estate, Amara sealing the doors behind them.

"Yes. Meat-Thief is trained to use his defecation as a weapon."

…gross. Very gross…

* * *

"…and that's the gist of things on good 'ol Eden-6." Amara sat in a plush, leather recliner, rubbing her chin and mulling on Wainwright's story. Seemed he'd been through quite a lot before they arrived, but managed to turn shit into success, in a sense. "Damn COV's practically taken over the planet, and if y'all hadn't come when ya did, I'd join my daddy in the mud."

"Glad we could be of service," Moze spoke, looking over an assault rifle she was gifted a moment ago. "But, where do we go from here?"

"Well, that's the harder part," Wainwright shook his head. "They got Alistair and are holdin' him somewhere."

"Alistair?" Amara questioned. "Who's that?"

"Oh, right…new Vault Hunters. Alistair Hammerlock. My partner in this situation. They're tryin' to use him as leverage to make me cough up the Vault Key; threatenin' to 'liquidate' him if I don' give 'em what they want. I'm guessin' that's why you're here, correct?"

"Yep," Amara nodded. "We were sent to open that Vault and deny the COV what they want. Ain't easy, but…well we're the ones for the job."

"Hmm," Wainwright grunted. "That Vault's been a family secret for generations—we didn' want our fair paradise to be torn asunder, like with Promethea, and with Pandora."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Zane asked.

"Simple," The older gentleman shook his head. "Where there's a Vault, there's always a war. And we didn' want one ravaging Eden-6. But, seems like they ain't givin' me a choice." Wainwright sighed, moving over to drop himself into a chair, cradling his head with his hands. "Just…I don' know what to do. If I let 'em get that key, we're all dead. But if I let 'em kill Hammerlock…I'll have nothin' left to fight for."

"Then we shall retrieve your lover." FL4K was already heading for the door, shouldering their sniper rifle. "And kill as many of these devils as we can. Where is he being held?"

"The Anvil; a prison not too far from here. I've sent a team of mercenaries up there, earlier, but…they've gone quiet. I'm assumin' the worst. So, you save Alistair, and I'll get you that damn Vault Key personally, and introduce as many of those bastards to the business end of a shotgun as I can."

"Sounds like a fair trade to me." Amara smirked. "We were gonna kill the COV on this planet anyhow. So, let's get moving. Mark the place on our ECHOs, and we'll return with Hammerlock." Wainwright nodded and the Siren turned to leave, heading back out to the Technical, where Zane was already waiting.

"Seems our friend's quite torn up over this." Zane noted. Amara nodded in response. "I don' blame 'em. Seems like he wasn' prepped to take over for Jakobs, and it's gettin' to him."

"Yep. But, unfortunately, he's gonna have to get his shit together pretty quickly. Otherwise, those twins'll kick him when he's down, and he won't be able to get back up."

"All the more reason we get his lover back. Wanna say boyfriend but, he seems old fashioned. Lover's a cooler word, too." Amara shrugged.

"_So, you're going after Hammerlock?_" Lilith asked in her ECHO.

"We are. From the way that guy worded it, you know him?"

"_Hammerlock was on Pandora during the Handsome Jack issue. Helped us out where he could, but, for the most part, kept to himself. He and Wainwright are together?"_

"Seems like it. Wainwright seems to really care about him."

"_All the more reason to get him out of there alive. I'll send Axton planet-side, have him give you some support down there. If you're heading for a place like The Anvil, more help wouldn't hurt." _

"Understood." The call ended and Amara took her spot in the passenger seat of the Technical. All this talk of lovers and boyfriends reminded her a bit of her own love life. It was sparse, on account of her spending a lot of her time out and about, but it was still fun.

But, for now, she remained focused on their goal. She could relive the past another time.

* * *

They were nearing this Anvil. Settled in the back of the Technical, FL4K took in the sights of the planet they enjoyed so much, patting and stroking the head of their pet jabber the entire time. It was good to be back on Eden-6; sure, it wasn't a perfect, nor safe, hunting grounds, but that was the point. The glory of the hunt must be upheld!

…also it reminded FL4K that they should have tamed one of the many, saurian beasts of the planet. Then again, they tried…those beasts are just plain savage.

The Beastmaster refocused when they saw they had arrived to the front gates to the Anvil.

"_So, you're still messing around on Eden-6? C'mon, Vault Thief; why don't you just—" _

"Why don't you stop calling me before I verbally abuse you again." FL4K retorted without any hesitation.

"_Eh, gotta. Just like I had to just BAMF into the Jakobs manner and leech the CEO. Took a page from Katagawa for that one! Managed to install a loyal puppet afterwards and she's a real ice-queen bitch. She's keeping the locals in line and keeping the books, which is less work for me, of course."_

"And you're telling me this for what reason?"

"_Cause I know you can't stop it! That's why?"_

"So, despite us fucking up literally every other plan you two inbred morons have initiated, you still maintain the belief that we can't stop you?"

"_I mean, we got the Vault's power, and drained your friend Maya dry. You guys didn't mess up THAT plan; walked right into it, even."_

"And your brother got bamboozled by a hormonal teenager and shot like a dying skag."

"_Hey! Stop talking shit about my bro before—"_

"Before you do _nothing_." FL4K cut her off, the Beastmaster dropping down from the Technical. "And that's because you're scared of us. Scared of _me_."

"_Psh, how am I scared? I got badass Siren powers, asshole!"_

"Yes, and you can teleport literally anywhere, yet instead of coming to attack us directly and end this little 'game', you instead sit on your ass, and hurl insults from afar, because you know, deep down, the mere instant I see you, I'm going to rip your head off, and let Meat-Thief pleasure himself with it. But, feel free to continue to insult and belittle from afar. Because it's only a matter of time before you make that mistake, and before you inevitably show yourself. And then, as said, Meat-Thief'll have a new toy. And then your brother's next. I want to hear him _scream, _just like Katagawa did for me." FL4K ended the call and looked over at their, somewhat, concerned pack members. "The bitch called me; spilled the details of what she did to Jakobs and that she placed someone in charge subservient to her. So, we know who to hunt down next."

"Yeah but…you're getting weird with your insults, FL4K." Moze said. "Like…threatening to—"

"Rip her head off and let Meat-Thief use it, yes. She's getting annoying, and so I'm done being cordial to her with my insults, and escalating straight to threats. Besides," FL4K plucked their handgun up, looking over it. "She's afraid. I plan to force her to make a mistake."

And with that, they proceeded forward. It was time to find this Hammerlock, and perhaps the mercenaries, too.

* * *

(Not a lot on FL4K's part, but, little by little, we're making things well. Sure, there'll be constant moments with Tyreen calling and being a cunt and, honestly, it fits. She seems like the sort of person to constantly taunt and insult someone, despite frequently being verbally assaulted each time.

I enjoy all the feedback on this story, and, perhaps, if I was part of Gearbox's writing team, the game could have been taken in another direction. But who knows? They could pull things together with the DLCs and patch the story up in places.

Anyhow, please enjoy this chapter. We're getting into some harsher stuff here, but we're little over halfway done with this project. So, let's keep going strong, alright?)


	23. Hammerin' the Anvil Part 1

Prison was a place Zane was happy to admit he hadn't ever gone. Sure, he'd sent some guys there when he served as a bounty hunter, but he himself never had to set foot inside of one…or at least set foot inside of one in a jumpsuit, waiting to get shanked in the showers.

The Operative stared at the front gates of the Anvil in the distance, where he and the others were heading to save Wainwright's lover. The place looked…destitute, for the most part, though he knew that was far from the case. The place was crawling with COV…so that 'getting shanked part' was still on the table.

"Yo! Glad you guys could make it!" Zane looked over to see Axton relaxing on a cinderblock, tinkering and fiddling with his turret. "Got dropped here a few minutes ago. Sorta wish Lil' let me take a ship down but, apparently, we ain't got one."

"Yeah, imagine that." Moze grunted. Made Zane wonder what ever happened to the Maliwan ship they stole…better still be there. "Anyhow, we're supposed to go in and find—"

"Save Hammerlock, yeah," Axton nodded. "Neat guy. Met him when me and the others got Jack's welcoming present. He was here and there during our plight against Hyperion, but he's a cool guy."

"Yep, but let's get a move on 'fore the COV get wind've what we're doin' here." Zane said quickly, already crossing the bridge to the Anvil as the others followed along. It didn't take long to reach the end of said bridge and approach the Anvil itself, namely the large set of gates that led further into the prison.

And the COV surrounding the area.

"Alright, here we go!" Zane looked over to see Axton had already tossed his turret out, the Commando sliding behind a cinderblock to open fire as his gadget attacked too. The Operative dropped his Barrier down when he heard incoming bullets, turning to shoot at any COV dumb enough to leave cover. The others were also all fighting, Zane noticing FL4K's pet was blowing a guy's head off with a shotgun.

The Beastmaster taught their pet well.

"Get that gate open, Mara!" Zane called, throwing out his Digiclone just as his barrier expired. Said clone open fired at anyone it could, drawing fire from the enemy but, thankfully, surviving pretty well. The Siren nodded and swiftly got to the control booth, flinging a guy out the window before he heard her open said gates.

"HAUGH!" Zane ducked as a bandit went sailing past his head. The Operative looked to see a absolute unit of a guy pulverizing and crushing the bandits around him, using his fists alone to bludgeon and tear them to bits before the last guy was given the worst treatment; being picked up and slammed down on the big man's knee, snapping his spine like a stick. "Whew! Damn bandits know how to put up a fight…" He sighed, turning towards the group with a growing grin. "Ah hell yeah, more Vault Hunte-AXTON?! That you, man?!"

"Sure is, Brick! Good to see ya, man!" The Commando hollered back. "Looks like you've been busy; just like on Pandora, right?"

"Heh, just like on Pandora. Listen, there's some more bandits ahead; help me clear 'em out, and we'll catch up and talk." Zane watched the absolute unit turn and charge ahead, hearing a barrage of punches against anyone unfortunate enough to be in his way, Zane turning to look over at Axton.

"You two know each other?"

"Yep. Brick was on Pandora with Lilith during the Hyperion situation. Think he became king of a bandit clan, too; the Slab King."

"Huh, so we're dealing with royalty?" Moze asked.

Axton shook his head. "Nope. Bandits used to run by a simple set of rules; biggest and toughest guy was in charge, and anyone who didn't like it usually didn't live long enough to complain. And Brick…well," Axton gestured to the big man who, currently, was snapping another cultist in two. "Is Brick."

"Point taken." Zane didn't wanna be on the receiving end of Brick's pinches. Either way, for the most part, they quickly got things cleared out, wiping out the remaining cultists and giving themselves a bit of time to breathe.

"Whew! Always fun breaking some cultist spines!" Brick hollered, brushing himself off and turning towards the group. "So, Ax, what're you doing here? On a job or something?"

"You could say that; Lilith sent us and—"

"Oh shit, Lil? How's she doin' these days? Haven't heard from her ever since Morde and I left Pandora to…well do this shit. Ain't perfect, but it pays the bills."

And, like that, uncomfortable silence washed over the group. Zane just scratched the back of his head. "Why…don' ya ask her yerself, friend? You'll probably see her yourself sooner or later."

"Fair point. I just hope nothin' bad happened; was bad enough when Roland died. If something happened like, say, Lil' loosin' her powers, I'd go on a murderous rampage and personally turn the COV inside out."

"…you'll…have to talk to her." Amara sighed. Zane silently called dibs on not telling Brick what happened. With how he was, Zane was a hundred percent confident he'd get crushed in the crossfire of Brick's murderous rampage.

Or horribly maimed. Either would suck balls.

* * *

"So, we need to find who again?" Moze asked, reloading her assault rifle as her and the others followed behind Brick, trekking through the ruined, aged halls of the prison. They were advancing deeper into the place and, clearly, the COV was doing everything they could to keep them away but, like with everything COV, they sucked at it. Sucked like a Diamond District whore.

…or…however the saying went. Cyrus was the one who said it.

"Crunk Bunny," Brick said without missing a beat. "Best damn demolitions expert I know. She'll easily have a way to get our ol' buddy Hammerlock outta here, but she's way further ahead. We sorta got split up."

"Ain' that the one thing ya ain' supposed to do on a job?" Zane asked. "Least that's how it was in me day. Course, also in me day, we used to just sneak in…"

"Sneakin's boring. Especially when you can just punch 'em to death. Speakin' of," Brick rammed his fist through a wall, Moze wincing when he ripped a battered cultist through the wall, flinging him into the wall. "Hard to sneak up on me."

"…I'm wondering how such a thing is possible."

"Zer0 liked to play a lotta pranks on me back during our downtime." Brick chuckled. "Fuckin' dick, but he always got me good. Anyhow…think y'all should start shooting?"

"Why—OHFUCK!" Moze ducked behind cover when a bullet passed by her head. She realized they were in a courtyard of some sort, one that was literally crawling with COV who open fired from any high point they could. "Fuck…almost got me there."

"Stop being so dramatic, Mozzy," She glanced over to Amara who wore a calm grin, the Siren currently reloading her shotgun. "Not like they broke your shields. And didn't you get a better one, recently?"

"I mean, I did, but…instincts." She sighed. "I'm calling in Iron Bear and—"

"_Yo, Meatslab, you on the way, yet? Got eyes on some guys heading my way." _She went silent when someone cut her off via ECHO, someone who Brick seemed eager to hear.

"On the way, Birdman! C'mon slabs, start shooting!" Moze popped up from cover and, with the squeeze of the trigger, peppered a few cultists who were pushing, the rest of them gradually getting mowed down by Zane's SMG fire, and the final few blown up from Amara's rocket launcher.

"Alright," Moze looked over to see Brick already moving. "I'm gonna go help out our sniper. You five meet up with Crunk Bunny." The big man was gone, and Moze turned her focus to Axton.

"You know who Bird Man and Crunk Bunny are, right?"

"Well," The Commando tapped his chin, clearly trying to remember as they walked down a narrow passage. "Bird man's gotta be Brick's old buddy, Mordecai. Best damn sniper on Pandora, who maaaaay have a drinking problem."

"And Crunk Bunny?"

_**BAM!**_

Moze flinched when blood coated her front, the Gunner just…frowning as she looked to the source…an absolutely insane looking girl standing over what was clearly the exploded remains of a bandit.

"…he moved." She dryly said, though when she saw Axton, her eyes lit up. "AX?! Holy shit it's been years! And you look old as shit!"

"Hah…yeah, Tina…seems you ain't so Tiny anymore…" The guy looked clearly intimidated to be around her. They must've had history.

"Seems you two have quite a history together." Amara mused.

"Yep! Ax and I go WAAAAAAAY back; I hooked him and his boys up with some dope ass explosives to blow up a Hyperion train way back when. Woooo! Good times. Ooo! You remember the time we—"

"Played Bunkers 'n Badasses; you made me fight a pissed off ogre alone and die."

"Hah! You got all pissy, too."

"The dice were rigged!"

"YOU ROLLED THREE NAT 1's IN A ROW!" They were fucking weird. "Hah! Anyhow, shiz is bad here. They got my bomb! I need my bomb to blow open the door to where they got Hammy Lock! So, we gotta get it back!"

"A fetch quest, then." FL4K tapped their chin. "Should be easy."

"…Ax, why you gotta loader with you?"

"I am not a Loader. I am FL4K."

"You look like a Loader. Imma call you Jacket Loader."

"…that is not my name and we both know it."

"Too late, Jacket Loader." They went back and forth. Moze just leaned over to Axton, keeping her voice down.

"What's her deal? She on something?"

"Who knows? Tina, believe it or not, was basically a psycho back in the days. Youngest demolitions expert on Pandora. She helped us a lot in dealing with Handsome Jack and, later, the fall of Sanctuary. So…she's useful. A bit insane, but useful. Just, for the love of God, don't let her fiddle with your ECHO."

"…why?"

"Let's put it this way; she's the reason the old ones got classified as explosives."

Point taken.

* * *

(I had planned to make this one longer, but due to circumstances IRL, I had to shorten it so I can deliver it a bit late, rather than much later. It's a start to something wonderful, but I can safely say that the next few chapters will be the highlights to this story. I'm still loving the support this story's garnered, and it's one of the main reasons I always make time in my week to work on this story. I do plan to open some additional writing projects, such as a Warhammer fanfiction I'm currently developing, but this story will always be continued and worked on until, eventually, it's done. We're a little over halfway there, but don't fret. I plan to include some side-quests and, outright, non-canon chapters to show change and growth. Will this end up on TvTropes? I'm unsure, but what I am sure of is this'll be remembered for quite a while, I hope.

Thanks for sticking with us so far; apologies if this chapter isn't up to the usual standard.)


	24. Hammerin' the Anvil Part 2

Zane was glad they were making good progress.

Huddled behind a piece of cover, Barrier recharging and Drone currently deployed, the Operative popped out of cover to pepper a cultist with his SMG, ducking back down when his shields flickered from a few, stray bullets. They'd recently gotten Tina's bomb together and now they just needed to take it to the designated location for it; a place the crazy bitch designated personally.

…granted, Zane didn't trust her on that, but Axton vouched for her.

Speaking of Axton, the Commando was crouched next to him, reloading his assault rifle and slapping in another magazine. "Reminds ya of the Handsome Jack days, don' it?" Zane asked, flinging a grenade over his shoulder and hearing a few psychos explode into pulp.

"Heh, yeah," Axton smirked, doing the same with his own, fire grenade. "Only these guys are a lot more plentiful than Hyperion's goons, and a lot less…worried about their own safety. I think only six of them have had shields. _Six_! Can you believe that?"

"They probably think their twin gods'll protect them," Moze called from her own cover. "Which is kinda funny, considering said gods are scared shitless of FL4K."

"Yeah I've been wondering about that," Axton said. "Why do they even bother trying to insult you guys, knowing your robot friend's gonna go for them like that? Are they just trying to be as charming as Jack was? Cause…y'know…" Axton shrugged. "Look where that got him. Blown up by Lilith after having, like, _all_ his plans utterly fucked."

"They'll get theirs, too." Amara choked a cultist in an arm lock, using her free hand to Phase-Slam an approaching psycho. "The important thing is we maintain our focus. FL4K, how close are we to where Tina wanted the bomb?"

"It's ahead," The Beastmaster casually popped a bandit's head like a grape with their sniper rifle. "Finish clearing these fools out, and I can get close enough to arm and detonate it." The remaining bandits were finished off and the group pushed forward, reaching a large, bandit covered bridge as…a strange bird shot past. Zane was tempted to shoot it but lowered his gun when he felt FL4K's hand rest on the barrel of his SMG, pushing it down.

"No," The robot said. "That's the companion of another hunter. Let him hunt."

"…what's that mean—" A few sniper shots rang out and, in moments, the bandits on the bridge were gone, and the bird moved to perch on a high-rise, where a gangly, disheveled man stood. He was armed with a stocky sniper rifle of his own, wearing a headpiece that made it hard to tell who he was, except for the fact that Axton seemed delight to see him.

"Oh shit, it's Mordecai! Yo! Morde! How's it going?"

"_Axton? That you? What the fuck are you doing here, man?"_

"Oh, you know…helping Lil' out with stuff. Same old."

"_Heh, that's usually how it goes. I'm guessing you and your friends down there are here to bust Hammerlock out? Cause, if so, he's not far, but you're gonna need a—"_

"Your friend hooked us up with a bomb," Moze spoke into her own ECHO, setting her rifle on her back. "Or, rather, we helped her build one."

"_Shit, you helped Tina build a bomb? Yeesh…make sure you wash your hands. No telling what that girl's used for components. Hell, last bomb she made was just a buncha gasoline, nitroglycerin, and a buncha other messy shit…and some radioactive shit."_

"…how is she not dead?" Zane was legitimately dumbfounded someone could be that crazy and still be alive. But, he'd seen weirder…sorta.

Regardless, they kept fighting and, quickly, secured the bridge. FL4K threw one of the remaining bandits off the bridge and brushed their hands off, motioning towards the building on the opposite side of said bridge. "I'll go 'deliver the pizza' and clear our path to Hammerlock. You all, prepare yourselves. There'll be a glorious hunt ahead." FL4K walked off and Zane worked on fixing his Drone.

"_Axton, your friend's weird…sorta like me 'cept…robot. Anyhow, we're clear for extraction, right Bric—"_

"_Hey! CODE NAMES!"_

"_Screw the code names, we're already done! Are we good for evac!"_

"_We are, but I put a lotta work into everyone's nicknames!"_

"_YOU NAMED ME BIRDMAN!"_

"_CAUSE YOU'RE A MAN WITH THE BIRD!"_

They were going back and forth, though their arguing was drowned out by a sudden, earsplitting explosion.

"Bomb's detonated."

Well, least that was quiet."

* * *

Moze wasn't sure if she was supposed to be impressed or annoyed that, while the door itself wasn't blown up, the walls _next_ to it were destroyed. She didn't let it linger as she and the others delved into the building, the place where Hammerlock was to be held.

It didn't take long to reach a large, spacious room, where the man himself was.

"Oh, excellent, Vault Hunters!" He sounded quite upbeat despite being stuck within a cage, hanging above the ground. "Good luck, because I think the Warden is—" He got cut off when said cage shot upwards and a large man dropped down…clearly the Warden, judging from his personalized arsenal and cop hat.

…he was so fucking _fat_, though…

Still, when the fat oaf started shooting, Moze ran to duck behind cover, open firing with her assault rifle and, frowning, when she saw her bullets weren't having the effect she sought…the fat fucker was still moving around.

"The fuck's wrong with this guy?!" She ducked down and loaded in a fresh mag just as bullets passed over her head. "How's he just shrugging off bullets?!"

"Probably has armor," Amara called. "Switch to a corrosive gun if you have one, Moze!" The Gunner frowned and switched to a handgun she picked up earlier; it was a shitty one, yes, but it WAS corrosive. Popping back out of cover, Moze open fired at the fat fucker again, watching him now react a lot more to the attack…a bit _too_ much.

"Oi, is it jus' me," Zane called out. "Or is he gettin' bigger…'n angrier…" True to the old man's words, the Warden was indeed getting larger and more dangerous…which, no doubt, meant he was one of those weird psychos who got larger and more dangerous when they took enough damage.

Yet, for the moment, she couldn't remember their name. She blamed that on being fired on by, like, a buncha guys!

"Moze, provide me covering fire," She turned to see FL4K loading a handgun; one of those gyrojet ones. "Amara, when you see him focus on me, hit him with everything you have."

"Understood." Moze nodded and popped up to open fire, catching a glimpse of FL4K turning invisible, the Beastmaster darting off. The Gunner had no clue what he was to do but—

"SHIT!" Her shields flickered out, and her eyes widened when she realized that Warden was aiming his gun right at her. "Grr!" Moze ducked down as best she could but still felt white hot pain fill her head, the Gunner's breath coming out in haggard pulses, hand clamping down on her shoulder. She could already feel her glove darkening with blood…her blood.

"Moze! Are you okay?!" Amara shouted, the Siren firing her shotgun with one hand as she stared at her with a bewildered, terrified expression. "How bad did you get hit?!"

"I…I dunno." She knew for a fact she didn't get grazed. There was _something_ in her arm, and she could already feel herself loosing some blood. But, as long as she kept pressure on it, she'd be fine. "Just…can you find me a—" The Siren already set a health syringe in her hand. "Thanks, Amara."

"Thank me when this fucker's dead." A series of explosions rang out, followed by blood-curdling screaming. Moze poked her head from cover to see that the Warden was stumbling around, smoke wafting from his head to show it'd clearly been caught in an explosion.

Means FL4K hit the fucker—

"Fuck!" Moze grunted and dropped back down. The Gunner pulled her hand away from her shoulder to pat at her side. The color drained from her face when she felt blood well up from there too. She caught more than just one stray bullet, and it was showing. It was showing a fuck-ton. Swiftly, the Gunner dug the health syringe into her thigh, swearing under her breath as she injected herself with the numbing, healing agents.

A few moments later and the pain was virtually gone, with her wounds all but mended. The bullets that were, moments ago in her, were now on the ground, leaving Moze huffing and panting in a mixture of anger and fear.

She got sloppy. She was so used to these COV fuckers being incompetent that she got lax with killing them. _Again_.

She refused for there to be a third time. There _wouldn't_ be a third time.

* * *

"Thank you again for the assistance, Vault Hunters," Amara nodded to Hammerlock once more as the large group left the prison. Moze was being supported by FL4K as the Beastmaster helped her into the back of their Technical as Axton, no doubt, went off to fetch them another one so he and Zane could get moving. Hammerlock was helped into the back of the primary one, the aged man adjusting his hat once he sat down. "I wish we could have formally met under better circumstances, but this is what happens when the twins are at play."

"Happens. Don't worry about it," The Siren climbed into the back just as FL4K got the Technical started, holding on as they got moving. "More importantly, how'd they get you?"

"Ah, that…" Hammerlock seemed downtrodden at that; his face falling and his head lowering. "Aurelia. My sister. She sold me out the first chance she had for control of the Jakob's Corporation and a chance at riches with the twins." That sent a pang of pain through Amara's heart. Betrayed by one's own family…she was glad she never had to endure the pain of such a thing yet was remorseful at the same time he had to endure it.

"I'm…sorry to hear it."

"It's fine…to be frank, it was expected. She's always despised me, ever since we were kids. There's no stronger bond than family, and that bond is broken…no greater source of pain." She could hear that he was trying his best to remain calm and even chipper about things, but she could tell it was really getting to him. More than she could imagine.

"Family isn't always who're you're born to, or who you share blood with," Amara nodded. "It's who stands with you when the chips are down, and who sticks with you when things are at their bleakest. You ran with Lilith a long time ago, right?"

"That I did."

"Her and her group are family, then. They've watched your back through thick and thin, and will continue to do so, as best they can."

"I suppose you're right…thank you, Vault Hunter, for such words of wisdom. It's just…I've always deeply wanted my sister and I to be close; to be family. I suppose at this point I'm just living in denial; there's no good left in her. And whatever good that _does_ remain in her is a mere façade until she's given an opportunity to stab someone in the softest part of their back." This was really weighing heavily on Hammerlock. Amara wanted to say something else, but…well there was nothing left for her to say, short of vowing to kill Aurelia for him, and she had a hunch that would be ill received. Despite all her treachery and villainy, she was still his sister.

She had to at least give Hammerlock a chance to reconcile with her…or, at the very least, kill her himself. It wouldn't give him what he sought, but it would at least bring some form of closure. Least, that was what Amara thought about the whole, complex situation.

* * *

FL4K watched Hammerlock and Wainwright tearfully embrace, holding one another tightly as the Beastmaster stood nearby, reloading and fixing their rifle. It was a touching sight; they could understand the two of them were lovers, mates, even. And, of course, as mates, they deeply cared for one another's safety. They were glad they could return Hammerlock to his lover, then, with the aid of their pack.

"Now, Vault Hunters," Wainwright sniffled, wiping his face with his sleeve. "We can move to the next phase of things. Now that Alistair's back, the COV ain't got shit to blackmail and threaten me with. So, they're either gonna come for the estate again, and fail, or try something else—"

"_Vault Hunter," _An astute, sharp voice rang in their ECHO. _"I am Baroness Aurelia Hammerlock, CEO of the Jakobs Corporation. I've, unfortunately, just been informed that you rescued my brother. Disappointing, really, considering Alistair still has to rely on others for his own safety. Regardless, this is a family matter, and you've no business interfering. That said, Vault Hunters are nothing more than whores, so I will simply pay you to leave my planet. Come to Jakobs Manor to negotiate your price. Oh, and I know you can hear me, Alistair. I'm **rich**, by the way." _The line went dead, and FL4K turned to the others.

"…now, see, I like me some cash from time to time," Zane began with a firm scowl. "But she can suck me dick for that one. I ain' no broad who can simply be paid off."

"Weren't you a mercenary?" Axton asked.

"That's different; as a mercenary, I didn' lie there and take shit. Employer got too mouthy 'n wordy, I put 'em down and find the next highest bidder. A whore? They ain' got a choice."

"And, unfortunately, neither do we." Hammerlock sighed. "As cruel and to the point my sister was with her…address, we can use this to our advantage."

"How so? Because reeks of being a trap, Hammerlock." Moze grunted from her seat, the Gunner tightening the bandage around her leg. "I already got shot in the shoulder, leg, and side today. I don't wanna get shot in the head the second we show up at that manor."

"We know it's a trap, yes," Wainwright spoke up with a sigh. "Which is why I'm goin' with you all."

"Winny!"

"It's alright, Alistair," The man shook his head. "The key's been in my family for generations, but its exact location, well that's a secret my father took to his grave. However, I know him well; he's left reminders and clues to deduce its location, namely in case he's…indulged in too much whiskey and can't remember where it's at. So, more or less, you all accept Aurelia's invitation and keep her distracted, and I'll find that key, or at least a hint as to where it'll be." FL4K wasn't okay with this idea. No sound predator walked into the den of another, equally dangerous predator. Not even with a plan! But, at the same time, Hammerlock and his lover were right; this was the only chance they had.

"Hammerlock," FL4K watched him look over. "If we go there, and your sister tries to kill us…you know what has to happen to her, correct?"

"Yes…I'm afraid I do." Hammerlock sighed, tipping his hat downwards a bit. "Just…try not to let it come to that, okay? I know damn well she won't face you herself, but in the off-chance she does, at least try to bring her down, but not kill her."

"You know that leaves the door open for her to attack us later on, correct?"

"I do. But, like I told your Siren friend, she's still my sister, and I love her. Worst case…I need to be the one to end her reign. It'll give me the closure I need." FL4K wished they had a mouth so they could frown, but for the most part, they understood Hammerlock's fixation, and nodded.

"So be it. If your sister does indeed greet us there to inevitably betray and attempt to kill us, I'll do what I can to take her down, but not out, so you may have the benefit of ending her yourself."

"Thank you, Vault Hunter." His voice sounded brittle. He was trying his best to be strong, but FL4K could hear weakness seeping through the cracks.

They didn't judge. This weakness was a good one. It told the Beastmaster Hammerlock direly craved his original pack, his family, to be whole…but it was something that would never come.

It was sad, but it was one of the uncomfortable aspects of Vault Hunting.

* * *

(So, as said, this chapter's a lot harsher. I apologize if I made Hammerlock seem…weaker here. It's mainly because, considering I have siblings, it feels fitting for him to be resenting the inevitability of him having to kill Aurelia, his sister, and it's weighing heavy on him. I couldn't fathom the thought of having to kill my brothers, and from what I recall, he generally felt the same towards his sister who's the exact opposite. Should make for some interesting chapters pretty soon. Stay tuned, and let's see where this goes.

Oh, and before I forget, I recently launched a new story for my _Warhammer_ fans out there; give it a glance if you're interested and, if not, I understand. Thanks for reading!)


	25. When a God Meets a Devil

"So," Zane asked, the Vault Hunters descending the steps to Jakob's estate as they prepared to, quite literally, walk headfirst into a trap. "Anyone else not wantin' to do this?"

"I don't."

"Me neither."

"This is a foolish, dangerous plan."

"Glad we're all in agreement, augh…shame we still gotta." The Operative shook his head and mashed a finger to his earpiece. "Hammerlock, ya got anythin' to help with this?"

"_A few things; speaking plainly, she's one of the wealthiest creatures in the galaxy, but do not be fooled by the fine furs and priceless jewels she wears. She has the heart of a bandit; she takes what she wants. She believes in nothing but herself. If anything, if she had the charisma of Tyreen or the cunning of Troy, she would have started her own cult long ago! But, as sad as it is, she has found her true family in the Calypsos…only they're as vile as she is, after all." _Zane kept a tight-lipped frown the entire time he heard Hammerlock's description of his sibling. So, she was a dangerous, very cunning foe…but there was a weakness there somewhere. A weakness he figured out.

"I think I got something." The Operative said as he climbed in and started the Technical up once again. "This ice bitch, at her core, is still a bandit. A clever one, but a bandit none the less."

"So? What's your point?" Amara asked.

"Bandits always have glarin' weaknesses. And it sounds to me, if I were a bettin' man, she ain' even gon' show to this meetin'. She'll send someone else."

"What…makes you assume that?" Moze asked herself as the Technical roared to life.

"Because I did some diggin' on her while Wainwright proposed his plan. Apparently, she was on Pandora's moon a few years ago, helpin' fuckin' Handsome Jack himself repel someone named the Lost Legion and, even, find a lost Vault up there…which means she's a Vault Hunter."

"I mean, all that's scary, old man, but what's your point?"

"She used to be a Vault Hunter; she knows how dangerous we can be, and considerin' what Hammerlock said she wouldn' attend this meetin' herself, knowin' the four of us could be in the room together. Plain 'n simple, we'd melt her."

"So, you're proposing she'll instead send someone else?" Amara drummed her fingers on her chin in thought. "The question is, who? We all know this is going to be a betrayal, so she's gonna try to send someone strong enough to take the four of us out at once. Can't be a bandit; every bandit the 'twin gods' have hurled at us ended up as a pile of giblets on the floor."

"Well, who could it be then?" Moze shrugged. "Unless those twins are finally gonna nut up and try and come after us themselves."

"That is a possibility," FL4K said. "We've slaughtered thousands of their followers, their children, and have consistently proven ourselves to be a threat. Because of this, there rests a high chance it could be one of the Calypsos there to meet us, with the idea to try and take us out once and for all."

"I mean," Zane shrugged, hooking a left to drift around a muddy curve. "Shouldn' be a problem. Worst case, I throw me decoy in and let 'em shoot it. But, still, let's take this time to come up with somethin' concrete. Cause, let's face it, we all know the second we get in there, it's gon' be a bloodbath and _clearly_ a trap." Zane just hoped it was one they'd get away from. He'd been in traps before and willingly walked into them, too, under the prospect of getting closer to the person he needed to kill, but this was different. Hammerlock spoke of Aurelia as if she were always four steps ahead of her foes; something his usual marks didn't ever think to be.

However, even if someone was four steps ahead, all it'd take was one well-placed kick to the ankles to send them tumbling six steps behind. And Zane planned on giving the ice bitch that for what she did to her brother.

Granted, Zane wasn't close with his own siblings, but he hated them. Hammerlock, on the other hand, seemed to desperately want to reconcile and do right by his sister, and that was something the Operative could respect.

…even made him feel a bit mournful. Then again, his brothers would have never tried to bury the hatchet, unless it was in his back.

* * *

Moze reloaded her assault rifle, looking down at the bullet-riddled remains of yet another cultist. The swamps en route to Jakobs' Estate were, of course, packed full of COV fuckers. Sure, said COV were dead before they even realized, but still. Didn't help her confidence in the slightest with the situation.

"_Ah, so the whore reaches for the cash," _And there was that smarmy bitch in her ECHO. That Aurelia. _"I knew you'd come. A Vault Hunter's loyalty is always for sale, after all. Come to the manor and you'll get your money." _Moze was going to shoot her in her tits. Reaching the manor itself wasn't hard, though, and the group ventured in, delving deeper into the place, though as the neared the dining hall, their pace slowed.

"…okay…so…either she's in there," Moze began with a sigh. "Or her assassin is. How're we doing this?"

"Simple," FL4K loaded a SMG. "Zane, Amara, you two assist Wainwright in his search. Moze, you wait by the doors and await my signal."

"…so…you want to go in there alone?" Amara questioned. FL4K nodded and she shook her head. "FL4K, that's suicide."

"I'm aware. But I know who's behind these doors. I know who's there." The Beastmaster slammed the mag into the gun with primal furor. "And I know they won't try to kill me; not until they're confident they've won. I have a plan. So, go." Moze was very skeptical now, but the others did as FL4K asked and moved to help Wainwright in his search. Moze, crouched by the doorway, AR at the ready as FL4K kicked the doors inwards.

The Gunner's eyes widened with violet energy surrounded them and yanked the robot into the room. Peering around, Moze's eyes widened when she saw that dickwaffle himself standing there, Troy. Next to him was a hologram of Aurelia, most likely so the ice bitch could see things, though she seemed disappointed that only FL4K was snatched. "Hmm, I guess this one's the only one without self-respect. Pity."

"Eh, still works out. But, hey, betcha weren't expecting to see me do this shit, eh, Vault Thief?"

"I'll admit, I am surprised to see you're bold enough to face me yourself." FL4K was eerily calm despite being held above the ground by, clearly, demented Siren energy.

"Yeah, well, it's time I start doin' things for myself, you dig? And, while I wanted to get the four of you fuckers here at once, I'm _more_ than content to get you, considering you don't know when to shut your lil' mouth."

"I don't have a mouth, actually. If you took the time to study simple robotics, and not suck up to your sister, you'd know that."

_**BAM!**_

Moze winced when FL4K was slammed against the ground, now being held there as Troy walked over with that same, eerie grin. "May wanna watch it now. Y'know, I'll admit, you're the only Vault Thief I'll miss; not 'cause I actually like you but 'cause you're bold enough to talk back to us! Bold enough to try insulting a god and not expecting some sort of divine intervention. It's funny; Tyreen says we should let you keep playin' along. Let you all live so, eventually, she can make you see the light and join our happy lil' family. You know that's why we haven't just teleported into your 'lil ship and atomized all of you, right? She doesn't see _any _of you as a threat to us, or what we're doing in the long run. And she's right. Somehow, the robot's the only one brave enough to come face me…or stupid enough."

"She's delusional." FL4K spoke in that same, calm voice. "As are you."

"Heh, how am I delusional? This power, your Siren friend didn't know what she had; I can pull god-damned STARS out the sky! I'm a literal GOD now, so, tell me, how am I delusional, hmm?"

"Because you say you're to kill me here, yet you never bothered to actually research into Maya's Phaselock, and how long it holds people for." The energy flickered away and FL4K sprang up before Troy could reach, fist meeting his face to send the fucker to the ground. Moze watched with growing interest as FL4K beat the _brakes_ off Troy, smashing his head into the table, flinging him into walls, and all sorts of things. Soon, the Siren was on the ground, huffing and panting, while FL4K casually approached him, blade at the ready. "Now, I feel it's my turn to monologue, if you'll be so kind to indulge. Your sister never came for us not because she thinks it's a simple game, but because she's _scared_. Because you're both scared. Look at you now; you claim to be at your apex, yet in a few moments I've torn that theory asunder. I've put you on the floor, like a bitch, where you belong. What makes you think I won't do the same to her when I meet her? What makes you believe I won't put her head through a wall and lop it off at the neck?"

"Haugh, ptew," Troy spat out a bloodied tooth. "You're…fuckin' wrong."

"Perhaps I am; perhaps the reason she hasn't tried to come for us yet is because, somehow, she still thinks she can turn us to your side. She still believes she can make us allies; of course, this just cycles back to my previous notion. She's scared of us, so she wants us with her, not against her. She doesn't want Vault Hunters out to get her, because she knows, in the end, they _always_ win. It just takes time. And she's just trying to run the clock out, hoping we don't get to sudden death."

"You…you're wrong you fucking robot!" Troy's hand clenched and, once more, FL4K was Phaselocked, causing him to slam into the wall. "Vault Hunters ain't shit, nor will they ever be! And I can speak from personal fucking experience on that one. They're just cowards who spend all day tiptoeing around a problem, rather than fucking fix it. Like now, even. You could've killed me; instead you just decided to beat me, like that'll do anything."

"You say that," FL4K stated again, giving a slight nod. Moze turned to take aim, staying as silent as possible as she lined up her iron sights with the back of Troy's head. "Yet you're shivering in fear. But I suppose it's time to—"

_**BlAM!**_

A shotgun blast rang out and Troy staggered back. Moze turned to the balcony to see Wainwright up there, shotgun in hand. "Up here, you cultist FUCK!"

"Damnit, you blew my fucking gauge off! I'm gonna kill you!"

"Then come get me, you rat-faced bastard!" Troy gave chase quickly, leaving FL4K to fall to the ground once the Phaselock ended. Moze uttered a few curses and walked over to the Beastmaster, offering a hand for them to take to get back to their feet.

"Guess Wainwright mucked the plan up?" Moze asked.

FL4K shook their head. "He wasn't made aware of it, unfortunately. He saw me in a bad spot and opted to try and help me." Sparks sputtered from their shoulder.

"You took more damages than you thought, huh?"

"I turned my pain receptors off when I entered. I anticipated something like this…but yes, a few things are fairly damaged."

"I'll get you to safety, c'mon. Zane and Amara can handle the clue, right?"

"Perhaps. Just contact Ellie, ask her to bring the ship down for me so we can be retrieved." Moze helped support FL4K as she hauled the robot out the manor. Their plan was a reckless and dangerous one but, at the very least, it worked out in their favor.

And it told her, when she saw Aurelia, she was going to ram a shotgun down her throat and fire.

* * *

(Shorter, plot heavy chapter. This one's CLEARLY non-canon, but still nice as it alludes to some stuff down the road and helps clarify things. Also, it helps touch on something else, something a Guest mentioned. I made the twins seem weak because, for the most part, they came off that way; they could have easily interfered and even directly attacked during the later stages of the game but, instead, they chose to just…sit back and hurl insults from afar. Granted, Tyreen DOES do something later that would be considered spoilers, but that's just it. One. But that may just be my opinion about them.

Regardless, next chapter I plan to resume my dynamic of "each char gets a spotlight"; I just wanted to keep this one short because it's a significant event. So, enjoy this chapter, and check out my other story _A Scaled Journey_ if you want to see me dip my toes in a world I'm still iffy with. See where it goes. Until then, take care, and have a fun Spring Break, people!)


	26. A Powerless Respite

Lilith wasn't sure how long she steeled herself. The Commander stood in front of the doorway to Tannis' lab, a place she wasn't sure she'd ever need to visit, given the scientist's…unorthodox methods, and yet at the same time, she wasn't here to see Tannis.

She was, instead, here to see Maya. Here to see her after her own powers were taken. The Vault Hunters were busy kicking ass down there on Eden-6; she didn't need to monitor them, so she wasn't sure what was there for her to do…aside from check in with her friend, and see how she was holding up.

The door slid open. Maya was still on the lab table, though now she was sitting up, gaze cast towards her hands. The sight made Lilith go rigid, but the former Siren took a silent, deep breath and stepped into the lab, letting the door shut behind her. "Maya?" She asked hesitantly. "Are you alright?"

"I…I guess. I'm not dead, right? Counts for something." She breathed, though from her tone of voice, she was _very_ much not alright. "Just…my powers, Lilith. They're gone."

"We'll get them back, Maya. Don't worry." The Commander affirmed. "The Vault Hunters'll make sure of that. They're currently down there, working to get the next Vault opened so we can deny the twins access to—"

"And you're sure that'll work?" Maya cut her off, shaking her head. "What makes you think they don't have a plan for _that_ too? What makes you think they won't just wait until they're done fighting the guardian, then swoop in and kill the Vault Hunters?"

"Maya, what's gotten into you?" Lilith stepped closer, watching Maya's eyes drift back down to her arm. "This sort of talk isn't you."

"Well, a lot changes when you lose the one thing you treasure most…" Lilith's gaze softened. That explained a lot.

"Maya…your powers were important, yes, but they weren't _you_; you're the one who makes them, not the other way around." The Commander stepped closer so she could stoop down, now much closer to Maya. "It's how I didn't give up hope after that bitch took my powers. I can still move, command, lead, and hold a gun. You can do the same. The COV only wins when we stop fighting, after all. It's what Roland told me when we were dealing with Hyperion."

"Just…it's been so long since I've had to not rely on them. Since I've been without them."

"And we'll get them back, but until then, least you'll get the satisfaction of strangling that lanky fucker, Troy, and taking your powers back yourself. So, brighten up. We still got this."

Maya chuckled a bit, only for her grin to fade a few seconds later. "…how do you remain so hopeful, Lil? About all of this?"

"I've had time to learn. When Roland died, I had to learn fast how to cope with shit and put on a brave face. Especially when we lost Sanctuary the first time, with those plant monsters running amok."

"Ah…I remember that." Maya nodded. "Was a…weird situation."

"Yep. So, at the end of the day, we're getting our powers back, denying the twins the Vault monster, and crushing the COV. Not just the Vault Hunters. _All_ of us."

Maya nodded. "Yeah…I should check on Ava, also. See how she's doing."

"Sure. But, remember what I said." Lilith rose and headed for the door; it was time she got back to the bridge and saw how the Vault Hunters were doing. "We're winning this fight. Make no mistake."

"I won't…we've made enough mistakes, after all. Can't really make anymore at this point, I think."

And there's the old Maya; good.

* * *

(What's this? Another non-canon chapter? But, yeah no it is; I felt like doing something different this week, and thus introduced a chapter with Lilith and Maya, more or less, coping with the loss of their powers, and trying to stay motivated to oppose the COV. It "might" have been covered in the game, but I can't recall perfectly. This should build some plot before, next week, I resume the Eden-6 stuff and, over the weekend, try to work more on the Warhammer story for the crowd into that.

Stay safe out there, people; we'll all get through this virus thing, so make smart moves out there.)


	27. According to Plan

"Zane, do you think FL4K and Moze will be okay?" The Operative shrugged in response to Amara's question. The two of them were sleuthing about the manor, letting the Beastmaster do their…weird plan. Honestly, Zane wasn't all for it, but if it really was a trap, he trusted that crazy ass robot to deal with whoever's in there…unless it was one of the twins. Then things would get hectic.

"I'm sure they're fine. For now, let's worry 'bout—"

"_Amara! Zane! Are you there?" _Moze's voice blared through his ECHO.

"Read ya loud and clear, Mozzy Moze," Zane mashed his finger against his earpiece. "What's up? Who was there waitin' for ya?"

"_Fucking Troy; Hammerlock's sister pussed out!" _Zane's face fell. Well…shite.

"Fuckin' hell, are ya okay?"

"_We're fine; FL4K got banged up a bit, but now Wainwright's keeping that assclown distracted. Unfortunately, FL4K and I are gonna exfiltrate the AO. They need repairs." _Zane scowled at that. Meant him and Amara were in this shit alone.

"Mara, ya caught all that?"

"Loud and clear," The Siren sighed. "I knew FL4K was a bit unhinged but trying to face one of the twins alone? Not a sound plan."

"Sounds like it worked out for 'em, though. They ain't dead, and Wainwright's got that arsehole distracted. Honestly, it shouldn' be hard to find the clue."

"What makes you say that?" Amara inquired with a frown.

"I got a hunch. Don' worry. Keep an ear out for Wainwright. Cause, let's face it, I ain' got the foggiest idea where to look…which is weird; one of me talents is findin' shit."

"Weird." Zane kept his handgun at the ready as they moved. Truthfully, he was worried about the others, worried that someone would come try to attack them while they weren't doing so hot. Those worries lasted all of four seconds before he remembered Moze had a mech that tended to obliterate anyone.

…the worries were back; now he wasn't sure she'd stop if she got going.

* * *

"Alright, Axton should be here any moment now with the drop ship," Moze grunted as she sat down, watching FL4K prop themselves against a tree. They were just outside of the manor, far enough away from the COV, yet close enough to remember fondly that, earlier, Troy tried to kill FL4K...and failed. "Augh…that was a stupid plan, anyhow."

"What makes you assume that, Moze?" The Beastmaster questioned. "Because it ended poorly."

"Just…in general!" She huffed. "What kind of fucker walks willingly into a trap? Like, we knew it was a trap from the get-go, and even figured out Hammerlock's sister would send someone like Troy, yet you still wanted to go in!"

"It was a calculated risk, Moze."

"Seems like you're bad at math, then. Like," The Gunner sighed. "I know, the twins ain't shit, but going in alone's an easy way to—"

"Cause you to be ensnared as well? Give him the opportunity to threaten and use you against me to force a surrender?" FL4K shot back.

Moze furrowed your brow. "I'm a lot tougher than I look, FL4K—"

"He knows that. At the end of the day, I went in alone because I had planned this from the start. Not just the start of this operation, but the very instant that fool spoke to me, trying to goad and insult us."

Moze's eyes widened. "Are…are you fucking with me?"

"Far from it; the longer I spoke to the twins, the more of a glimpse I got into their shattered psyche. How they would react to certain things and how they would behave long term against a foe as well. And, from that, I knew that if I continued to chip away at their shells, it was inevitable they'd break, and they'd come after us directly. It's one of the reasons I had Ava go with Maya in the first place; if Troy was wounded or felled by a teenager, it'd slash his pride even more, and make him that much more likely to try to goad and encourage his sister to come after us directly, and attempt to end the farce they call a fight."

"And…why would you want to make that happen?"

"You are a soldier, Moze; you know better than I that an angry foe is a foe who makes mistakes. And you should never interrupt an enemy when they're in the process of making a mistake. It's why, even when I was trapped in a Phaselock, I continued to belittle and insult him. He'd try to assert himself and convince himself I was wrong. The Phaselock would, inevitably, run out, and then he would be left to my devices, which is what you saw there."

"Yet I'm not following why you wanted me to shoot him in the back of the head…won't that just piss a Siren off?"

"It won't," FL4K shook their head. "I did my research on Sirens long before we undertook this hunt. Almost a decade ago, even. And I know, despite all their powers, merits, and feats, they can die about as easy as a human can, when struck the right way. Even if your shot didn't kill him," FL4K pulled their SMG up, offering it to Moze. "This would have provided the chance." The Gunner reached out to accept the gun and looked over it, realizing it was a Teidore gun with a nearly spent mag.

"Lobbing an exploding gun in his face was your escape plan?"

"As I said, I've done my research; Phaselock requires concentration to maintain. A gun exploding in one's face is a good concentration breaker."

"And…where did you get all this info?"

"…places. Namely, Hyperion databanks prior to my meeting with you all."

Moze furrowed her brow. "Hyperion has data on Vault Hunters?"

"Aged data, actually; the information I downloaded was regarding Maya in her younger years, during the Hyperion conflict. Said notes claimed she could only hold Phaselock for a short time and required focus to activate." FL4K really had it all figured out…it was weird to hear.

"So, all this time, you were playing things to how you wanted them to go?"

"At least with them. Though, now, there's no telling how the fools will act towards us. They may even target the ship directly, considering how defensive Tyreen is towards her inferior sibling. We'll have to forewarn Lilith to put up some cloaking devices, else the twins may just teleport to the ship and try to kill people."

Moze nodded in understanding. "I'll let her know when we get back. Though, once you're back in the ship, I'm heading back to give the others backup."

"So be it. Be mindful, though. Troy still roams the manor. If you aren't careful, you may run into him and Wainwright."

"I saw you lay his ass out easy. What chance does he have against a trained soldier?"

"I have no life essence to drain. You do. If he manages to grab you, Moze, he wins." Those words made her furor fade a bit…that WAS something she had to consider. It further explained why FL4K wanted to go in themselves…robots didn't have any energy like that to drain. It just made Moze a little more impressed by FL4K's foresight…and concerned they planned that far ahead.

And that raised another question. If FL4K planned everything out, how did they think things would end?

* * *

(Another short, slightly non-canon chapter. Really, it's a fun little way to get a glimpse of how FL4K's psyche operates, and how demented someone like that can be when applied. So, hope you all enjoyed. Be safe during this quarantine, people. Also, for the reviewers, I may incorporate some of your ideas into this story; I'll credit you all accordingly, and if I forget to, don't hesitate to remind me.

Stay safe!)


	28. Clues and Lies

Zane retracted his wristblades from another, dead COV fucker, dropping the body to the ground. "We ain' any closer to this damn clue are we, Mara Mar?" The two of them walked down the drab, wooden hallway, heading for the theater. Their search, so far, was next to fruitless; at the very least they got to murder a lot of COV fuckers.

"Don't think we are, old man," The Siren retorted. "But, thankfully, if it's this hard for us it'll be next to impossible for the COV; especially with one of their precious gods occupied and distracted."

"Yeah…weird how the moron doesn' remember he can teleport…or…can he not do that?"

"Tyreen, Zane. That bitch is the one who teleports. Her parasite of a brother just clings to her while she does it." The older man nodded, still…annoyed over things.

"Well, let's hope we can get rid of 'em and avenge everyone they fucked with. Sooner we do that, sooner we can finally get some downtime."

"What? I thought you liked killing and kicking ass?" Amara teased.

"I do, but I _also_ wanna drink, and Moxxi's has Happy Hour at two. I wanna try this drink she made called Trophy Hunter and—"

"_Get back here, Jakobs!" _Troy shouted in his earpiece. Guess the moron left his ECHO open.

"_Say, rat-boy," _Wainwright shouted back, still in ECHO feed. _"Ain'tcha the one who has to suck at your sister's teat for sustenance? Didn' know you two were close like THAT!"_

"_Rgh…die in a gutter!"_

"_You first."_

"Y'know, with all the insults FL4K's lobbed at these two clowns," Zane turned to another ECHO frequency. "I'm surprised they haven't grown thicker skin."

"Thick skin only protects so much, Zane; that's when your insulters start digging into the skin." Amara commented.

From there, they went through the traditional song and dance Zane enjoyed; rushing through mobs of idiotic COV and sending them to a fiery, acidic, or even shocking grave. Was always still a treat, of course, but after a while, the Operative found himself entering the theater at last, carefully reloading his pistol as he kept his eyes out.

"Keep ya gun loaded, Mara," Zane grunted. "Somethin' 'bout this don' sit right."

"You say that as if _anything_ here should sit right."

"True, but now it's even worse." The lights all collectively turned on in the old, antique theater, and a Goliath dropped onto the stage. The bulky, engorged man staggered forward, looking about, as Zane lined his iron sights up with the fucker's head.

"_Hey, Vault Thieves, wanna see somethin' your soon-to-be-dead Siren friend couldn't do?" _Troy said in his ECHO. Zane's worries were made very apparent when magenta energy engulfed the COV fucker, causing him to convulse, twitch, and spasm. His guns clattered to the ground as he was suspended in the air. _"Yes! Feel my power rush THROUGH YOU!" _The Goliath dropped back to the ground, skin a deep purple color as he was fully muscular now, causing a slight crater into the ground when he landed. He was much bigger than a normal Goliath, now, and clearly much more dangerous too.

"What…what the fuck is that thing?" Amara was already loading slugs into her shotgun.

"_That, Vault Thieves, is my Anointed. My champion! So…feel free to die screaming to him. Cause, let's face it, you ain't killing him." _The fucker fucking _teleported_ across the room; Zane threw himself left just as the Goliath's fist swiped past him.

"Fuckin' hell; didn' know Sirens could do this sorta shit!"

"Me neither; all the more reason we need to kill these COV monsters before it's too late." Amara was already dumping slug after slug into the monster's back, but it had little to no effect. Zane dropped his digiclone and backpedaled, only for the Anointed to crush it in a flash, sending hard light scattering throughout the room.

"Makes me wish we brought Moze with us…" Zane sighed as he switched to his SMG, open firing and peppering the monster with flaming rounds. The Goliath staggered back this time, only for its skull of a head to ignite suddenly. "…aaaaaand that ain' good." The Operative leapt off a seat just as waves of fire seared the spot he stood moments ago. Amara's fist collided with the Anointed's head, the Siren raining blow after blow into the fiend's head as Zane kept shooting at it, tucking his SMG against his chest so he could fire both it and his handgun at the same time.

"I think we're getting' somewhere!" Zane called, watching the Anointed slow down gradually, though this led to its attacks worsening. The Operative's eyes widened as the thing teleported once more, now out of sight.

"…" Zane threw down his barrier just in time to feel a fist meet it, smashing through the hard light and colliding with him. His shields soaked up the impact, but they didn't stop the force as the old man went flying, everything spinning until he felt his back collide with a wall. "Fuck…that'd have killed me if I didn' get a better shield," He huffed, feeling his shields gradually recharge as the Anointed teleported again, this time right in front of him, fist raised.

"No you don't!" A ghostly hand clamped down on its fist, causing the fiend to turn in time for Amara's foot to slam into the Anointed's head, sending it to the ground so, finally ending things, she emptied her shotgun into its head. The dying fiend convulsed and quaked, skin hardening even more until, in a few moments, it was encased in purple crystal…but thankfully, it stopped moving.

"_Psh, whatever! Kill as many Anointed as you want." _Troy chided. _"I keep makin' 'em; my army's endless, after all! But, you know what? I got more important crap to do." _

"Well, least that rat-bastard's quiet," Zane coughed a bit, patting his chest and inspecting himself for any damages that went unnoticed in the commotion. Thankfully, he found none…an amazing feat, considering the shit they just fought. "Good work, Mara Mar. Looks like we're…" Zane trailed off as he saw Amara staring at the dead body of the Goliath, a dark look in her eyes. "Amara? Ya good?"

"…honestly, no." She sighed. "If he can just churn these things out endlessly then what chance do we have? Look how much effort it took to kill a single one. I'm just…augh…I'm worried, now."

"Well, let ol' Zane fix that." The Operative cleared his throat. "If he works like his skank of a sister, he needs power to fuel this weird lil' shite of his. Power he'll have to drain from their underlings. And, even there, there's still the HIGH chance the lil' shit was bluffin'; tryin' to scare us when, really, he can only shite out one or two've these every so often."

"And what if this is the one time they're not bluffing?"

"Then my theory still holds ground. He ain' gonna make an army without killin' himself, or pissin' off his big sister. And, if and when that happens, we might as well just kick back and watch the COV take itself apart like pissed off skags."

"Augh…I guess you're right. Thanks, old man."

"_Hey, um, if you two're done…"_

"…Wainwright, how long've ya been listenin'?" Zane questioned.

"_Few minutes; didn' wanna interrupt. I always love me some good character development…even though this is real…anyhow! We can get down to business. The trapdoor to my father's study has a trick latch. Y'all just gotta figure out the solution. Head up to the technician's booth; shouldn't be hard to guess." _

"You take a breather, Amara," Zane was already moving. "I'll go get this trapdoor thing figured out." The Operative got to walking, mind still playing over things and figuring them out. In all seriousness, he _was_ a little worried that, for once, the twins weren't fucking around and were serious about their threat. Which, if so, that meant they could potentially be fielding an army of super soldiers! However, try as he might, Zane honestly couldn't feel any fear from such a revelation; only annoyance. Besides, he had his theories as well, especially the theory of them clashing.

From what he saw and heard, Tyreen was calling the shots and was undisputed. If Troy got to be as strong as her, he had a hunch she wouldn't take that lying down…

* * *

"How much longer til we reach the AO?" Moze asked Axton as the Commando brought the dropship close to the manor. She was rearmed and resupplied for the mission at hand, and she didn't plan to leave until they recovered that clue. She just hoped Troy pissed off or, better yet, got tagged and taken out by her team.

Of course, all things considered, she doubted it'd be that easy.

"Eh, not long. ETA's about five minutes." Axton responded, chuckling. "Y'know, it's been a while since I've been able to sling these military terms around. Feels good, y'know?"

"Not as much; wasn't too fond of my contract, or who I worked for."

"Lemme guess, Vladof?"

Moze's eyes narrowed. "…how'd you know?"

"Your mech; looked like one of their Iron Bear mech suits. And you were all military-like, so that meant you either stole one, or you earned one. And I crossed the former off the list, 'cause Vladof've killed you by now."

"Ugh…yeah, I did work for them, but then Darzaran Bay happened, and then…well this shit's happening."

"Always tends to happen to Vault Hunters who used to be soldiers; trouble has a habit of finding you, and it ain't nice with its visit, either. Like with the Handsome Jack shit. Lotta times out there where I thought we weren't gonna make it."

"Weren't New-U stations a thing, though?"

"Well yes, but actually no. They were reserved for Hyperion peeps. If WE used any, we'd risk either coming back as just a screaming head, get warped right into a Hyperion prison cell, or a slew of other things. If anything, I'd take these COV fuckers over Jack."

"Why's that?"

Axton shrugged. "These guys, at their core, are just bandits. Bandits are dumb as shit. Hyperion's goons? They were organized as shit. And Jack? He was always a few steps ahead of us. Like with him snaggin' Lilith or using that core we slapped into Sanctuary to make us vulnerable to orbital bombardment. Every time we went against Jack's forces we got by 'cause of skill and luck." Moze furrowed her brow at that. When the Commando put it like that, the COV felt no more than mere jabbers banging their sticks on trees. "Besides, these 'twin gods' seem pretty bad, too. Bad as in shitty."

"Yet they've managed to get Maya, though. I blame myself for that."

"But did she die, though?"

"Well, no."

"They suck, then, but what I meant is they seem more or less like dumb kids who discovered the ECHOnet; their plans are rushed and…well, frankly, have more holes than cheese in a shooting range. Y'all should take advantage of that."

"How so? They have every single bandit on Pandora working for them."

"I'd say eighty percent. And, also, at their heart, a bandit's only gonna work for the one who promises them the most loot." Moze never thought of it like that. She let that stew in her head as she dropped from the ship, landing in the murky waters of the swamp with a huff.

"Just make sure you're back to pick us up. And, if FL4K gets better, send them our way, too."

"_Can do, soldier. Give 'em hell!"_ The ship flew off and Moze shouldered her rifle, moving on. She was gonna give them more than hell; she was bringing Ragnarök itself.

…heh…that sounded like something Amara would say.

* * *

Amara sighed in a mixture of frustration and relief as, after a good while of working, they had the trapdoor open. The Siren watched the trapdoor down below the technician booth slide open, which meant they could get the damn clue and begone from this weird place.

"Why the fuck was that so damn difficult?" She griped, shaking her head. "Why the fuck would he make the answer an outdated movie?!"

"Mara, I hate to break it to ya, but that movie isn't so old. And, even then, whaddya got against old movies?"

"Y'know, I'm not surprised; you were probably young when that movie was being filmed."

"Young and _handsome_, Mara, get it right." Zane chuckled as the two of them dropped into the trapdoor. "Oi, Wainwright, what're we lookin' for down here?"

"_Honestly, I'm not entirely sure; my father said he kept all his records down there. I…guess…look for somethin' record like. Maybe he was bein' literal." _The two of them searched for a while before, at the end of the study, Amara spotted a record set on the wall.

"You mean this thing?"

"_Huh…so he was bein' literal, yet again…might explain why he said he was gonna beat that one guy with a jabber's tail…movin' on. That record's gotta be as old as Jakob's Corporation itself, and I got the only ligno-phonograph player in the entire system. If he wanted to leave me a message, that must be it!"_

"Wait, you have the only one?" Zane asked. "Why the fuck do ya got the only one?"

"_They didn' sell well, I guess. But, my daddy was always old fashioned. Guess he wanted as close to old fashioned as he could get. Anyways, bring it on back to the lodge. Let's see what he left." _Amara plucked the record up and turned just in time to hear footsteps. The Siren's tattoos glowed sharply but, thankfully, she refrained from acting…namely because Moze came into view, tired and out of breath.

"Why the fuck is this place so damn big?!" She huffed.

"Heh, if I had a dollar for every time someone said that…" Zane chuckled and walked off. "Anyhow, Mozzy Moze, ya got here in time to leave. We gotta head back to the lodge."

"…and y'all didn't bother to send me a message?"

"To be fair, we were havin' puzzle troubles." Amara frowned, and Zane shrugged. "But, fine, sorry. Next round's on me when we get to Sanctuary, 'kay?"

"I'll be sure to get the expensive drink, then." Amara mused as she got to walking. "C'mon, Moze…and where's FL4K?"

"Getting repaired. I'll radio Axton and let him know the murderous robot can come on back."

"That reminds me, Troy was here," Amara scowled. "Did they get injured confronting him?"

"Unfortunately. Yet when I talked to them, they said this was all part of their plan. Pissing the twins off and making them sloppy. Was…really trippy."

"Wait, that robot actually planned everythin' we've done out? And I thought _I_ overplanned…" Zane grunted.

"Agreed…well, I hope they planned for things to work out, then. Because, apparently, Troy can make super soldiers."

"…fucking what?" Amara shook her head. She had quite the story for the Gunner, and thankfully, a lengthy time for her to tell it.

She wasn't going to leave anything out.

* * *

FL4K's metal fingers drummed on their chair as the Beastmaster sat in their seat, optic focused into the depths of space. Their ECHO was held up to their head, and a dial tone was ringing. They knew she would pick up soon, though. It was inevitable.

"_Huh? Who the fuck is this?" _Tyreen's voice answered.

FL4K mentally sneered. The VPN was working and scrambling their signal. "Someone you foolishly try to convert."

"_Fuckin'…Vault Thief? How did—"_

"Don't ask how I contacted you. Just know, for once, I'm going to give you some helpful advice."

"_Oh yeah, and what's that?"_

"Watch your brother. He's picked up quite a few new tricks."

"_Psh, of course he has! What? You scared?"_

"Scared for you, actually. He's already learned how to Phaselock people; to trap them in the astral energy Maya did, and he can even leech just like you."

"_So? What's your point?"_

"My point is the leech may soon no longer require its food source. The most you can do is teleport and drain, whereas he can fling people at one another. And when I encountered him down there, he said such wonderful things about you."

"…_what kind of things?"_

And now, she had a foot hovering over the beartrap. Time to make her drop her foot.

"He'll soon be stronger than his beloved sister. That he's tired of you viewing him as a liability, and soon he'll be calling the shots, and controlling the COV. Before you refute me, try to think. You have charisma, but he has cunning. And in the end, cunning always beats the charismatic. You've given him ample time to plan and think things out while you 'appeal to your fanbase'."

"_S-So what, you think my baby bro's gonna turn on me?"_

"Or simply use you as a puppet to further his goals. The ECHO chatter I've picked up from my friends tells me he can even bless followers with insane power. How long until your followers begin to worship him more, in exchange for this power? To venerate a god who doesn't leech them like mere snacks? Do you know what happens to a goddess without followers, Tyreen?" FL4K leaned back in their seat. "They fade." With that, they ended the call and leaned back. The Siren's foot was firmly snug in the beartrap. They had her right where they wanted her to be. Now, all they had to do was keep it up. Make her even more unsure of herself…and then, inevitably, they'd clash.

A smart hunter always killed two birds with one stone. A smarter hunter lets the birds kill each other before bringing a stone down on the victor's head. Honestly, they was rooting for Tyreen to be that bird; they imagined her skull would make an enticing _**crunch**_ when it was crushed.

* * *

(Another chapter done, and more plot exposed. Sure, the last segment makes FL4K seem antagonistic, but with how they were depicted in the game, that last segment feels like something they'd do; intentionally make Tyreen and Troy clash. Plus, some reviewers wanted them to clash, so I found an amusing way to work that into the story.

Enjoy this chapter, and I hope you all are staying safe! Thanks for all the support and encouragement with this story, and hopefully, I can keep going to handle the DLCs, too!

Also, the Trophy Hunter is a drink made by AMC theaters to promote _The Predator_ film. And, in my off-time, I plan to work on a legitimate novel for that franchise, so let's hope that becomes a reality.)


	29. Takin' the Town

"So, Vault Hunters, you spoke with my sister and lived to tell the tale?" Zane heard Hammerlock ask as the group of them sauntered into the lodge once again. It had been a long ride over, but thankfully they had little interference nor resistance en route. Seemed the COV were still shit at tactics.

"Well, yes, but actually no," Zane shook his head. "Hologram. And I wasn' the one who went in."

"Really?" The old hunter raised a brow. "Who did, then?"

"I did," FL4K spoke up, still looking over their newly acquired Maliwan sniper rifle. "And it was all a ruse to try and have Troy catch us all alive?"

"Troy Calypso? My word…" Hammerlock breathed. "I wasn't even sure the twins themselves would come for you four. Always figured them to be elusive predators…or idiotic cowards."

"Cowards is right," Wainwright grunted. "But, nevermind the rat bastard and his harpy friend. The record—may I see it, Vault Hunter?" At Zane's nod, Amara handed Wainwright the record. The aged man looked over it, scowling firmly all the while he did.

"Somethin' wrong with it?" Zane asked.

"No…just," He sighed. "still can't believe the Calypsos murdered my father, just to get a hold of his company. It's still eatin' away at me, losin' one of the few family I have left." He shook his head. "But, gotta be strong. I need to get my record player working, but you know Aurelia's gonna send all those damn zealots to find us. If we're gonna last long enough to open that Vault, we'll need an army of our own; a good ol' Jakob's resistance."

"More boots on the ground's always a good thing." Moze agreed. "But, no offense, doesn't look like anyone in here's ready to go to war with these freaks. Least not without a crash course on gun safety and a week or two in boot camp."

"Maybe so, but we can at least get the most important part of a resistance; firearms. And I know just the town we can start with. Reliance. If we're gonna take this planet back from these psychos, we'll start there. I hired a gunslinger named Clay to lend us a hand. He'll be waitin' for you outside the town."

"Good; we can finally mess these cultists up as good as we did on Promethea." Amara cracked her knuckles and turned to walk. FL4K's beasts followed with her, the Operative lingering for a moment as the group filed back outside.

"FL4K, ya got a sec?"

"Of course," The robot turned around and focused their weird eye on Zane. "What is it?"

"Moze said ya planned all this out, right?"

"The vast majority, yes; there were many variables left unaccounted for, but for the most part things are playing out as I had hoped."

"And that hope is?"

"To kill the Children of the Vault, restore Lilith and Maya, and add the twins' heads to my mantle. What else?"

Zane sighed. "Good; usually when someone tells me they 'got everythin' planned out' it's code for 'ya ain' livin' to see the plan through' or some shite like that. Had one too many fuckers pull that on me."

"Your paranoia is understandable, but ease yourself," FL4K motioned to the others who, currently, were trying to get Mr. Chew to stop chewing on the wheel of the technical. "They are my pack; only a fool turns on his pack, for when everything is at an end they're the one thing you can truly depend on."

"I…guess that's a nice way to put it."

"Besides, as said before, I've already analyzed all of you when we first met and deemed none of you favorable to kill." They said that so nonchalantly. "Not because you are unworthy prey, but because you all would help my pets and I survive and thrive."

"That's a weirder way to put it, but I'm glad ya ain' tryin' to stab me in the arse."

"No. However, I _will_ admit I swiped a magazine from your room; one titled Lonely Space Vixens."

Zane's eyebrow twitched. "Why th' fuck'd ya do that? That's a collector's issue!"

"Curiosity." Zane didn't want them to clarify. His ire faded as the older man took his spot in the driver's seat of the technical. FL4K was weird as fuck but, in a sense, they were right. The four of them? They were a family, and they already made it clear they ain't splitting up like the other group of Vault Hunters did.

Zane got attached to his weird little group. Even if Moze still gave death threats when he poked fun at her. Even as he turned the key, the Operative was thinking up some jokes for her…might take a classic approach and make some short jokes.

* * *

"Last time I ride in the fucking back with the animals…" Moze groaned as she wiped slobber off her rifle. The ride to the town started off fine, but, like all things, something went wrong. Wrong, in this case, was FL4K's damned skag getting bored and chewing on her gun while she wasn't looking.

The Gunner grimaced when she felt her fingers trail over the wet, toothmarks in the gun. Damned thing had a stronger bite now that it was a…huh. "FL4K, the fuck kinda skag is this?"

"Horned." The Beastmaster walked along the side of the technical. "Mr. Chew got larger and will soon evolve and grow to become an Eridian Skag; his final and greatest form."

"…doesn't…that mean he's at the end of his lifespan? I think…never really took Biology…"

FL4K shook their head. "Skags mature quickly but can live for many years. The oldest skag I've hunted was around ninety years old." Moze was…perplexed at that, though her perplexity became fear when the robot's damned Spiderant crawled out the back, the Gunner just now noticing the creature was fucking _huge_ now. "And Broodless here has already molted into a Countess. In time, she may even mature and become a queen."

"…how have I not noticed that thing getting so big…?"

"To be fair, she's quite easy to miss. It's why she's so effective in the hunt."

"Oi, less chit-chat, we're movin' in." Zane called. Moze casually flipped him off and hopped out the technical, rifle shouldered and gaze darting about.

"_Now, I don't really trust Clay," _Moze heard Wainwright speak in her earpiece. _"Slick bastard and all…and also a smuggler. Only reason I'm considerin' him to begin with is 'cause he's worked for my father, and he just might be our best shot at drivin' them zealots back into the mud from whence they came…that, and he's probably a good shot at arming our people with firearms."_

"Rodger, keeping a hand on the trigger, then." Moze grunted, pressing forward with the others.

"_So, ya met the newest member of our glowing, growing family!" _And THERE was Tyreen. Of fucking course. _"Yeah, that bitch's something else; tried to kill her own brother! Heh, glad Troy and I have…a better relationship than that." _She trailed off, now sounding less confident and more unsure of herself. It was rare, almost enthralling, even. She went quiet a moment later and the group reached the gates, where two dead COV goons rested, with…a pool of cash nearby.

"Over here, Vault Hunters," Moze's eyes were on the speaker; a tall, strange looking man with an insidious set of goggles and a western hat atop his head. "And sorry 'bout the mess. Had I known Wainwright sent some company my way, I'd have tidied up."

"What even happened to those two?" Amara asked.

"Well," The man shrugged. "They learned I'm a people person. Name's Clay, and I suppose the five've us are here to start a Jakob's resistance. Do I have the pleasure of knowin' who I'm workin' with?"

"I am FL4K," The Beastmaster introduced themselves first. "And that is all you need to know about me. The rest are Zane, Amara, and Moze," They gestured to each of them as they spoke. "And the same rule applies." Least FL4K was trying to be tactful about things.

"Hmm," Clay looked up at the gate, shaking his head. "I'll touch on that later, but for now, we ain' gettin' in the front gate, but I might know another way. Follow me." The man was already moving, the group following as they crawled and maneuvered over some crates to climb up to some scaffolding. "Now, a resistance typically needs two things, from what Mr. Jakobs' told me; hope and guns…mostly the latter. So, we're liberatin' this town, crackin' open the weapon's cache, and puttin' Jakobs guns back into Jakobs' hands. Easy, right?"

"Seems easy." Amara commented. It didn't take too long to reach a strange, secret entrance settled in an old building; one Clay easily opened and gestured for them to proceed.

"Few bandits down there, Vault Hunters," Moze looked over to see Clay pointing down at some bandits on patrol. "Show me how ya kill, if you'd be so kind—" An explosion made Clay fall silent as FL4K's jabber was already hurling fiery barrels it somehow found, open firing with its shotgun as well while screeching dementedly. Of course, everyone collectively turned towards FL4K for an explanation.

"In my defense," The Beastmaster readied their sniper. "He saw that in a movie."

* * *

Amara Phaseslammed another psycho, crushing the fucker and breathing a sigh of relief. The liberation of the town was a good work-out; wasn't as high-paced as the things from earlier, but it served as a good distraction from the things she witnessed in the manor…the things that were still weighing heavy on her.

"Yo, Mara, ya good?"

The Siren looked over to Zane. "I am, yeah. Just thinking and working off some stress."

"Good, jus' makin' sure. Also," The old man pointed to a literal pile of bodies. "Ya did THAT on yer own…sorta thought you were ventin'."

"I…sort of am."

Zane furrowed his brow. "Yer still worried 'bout that Anointed thing? Like I said, we'll be fine. Just gotta keep at it."

"Right, thanks." She still found it weird Zane was being the voice of guidance, considering his mentality, but Amara found it comforting nonetheless. "Also, did we ever free—"

"Yeah the rebels are freed. Sorta forgot 'bout 'em amid the commotion, but thankfully FL4K and Mozzy Moze didn'." Zane shook his head. "However, Clay's been mentionin' someone named Dalton bein' unaccounted for. Apparently, he's important."

"Important how?"

"He's a master gunsmith," Amara nearly jumped when FL4K uncloaked next to her. "One who can craft intricate and powerful firearms for those with the right funds. We need to recover him and—"

An explosion cut them off. Amara looked over to see Clay standing over with Moze, with a smoldering hole in the side of one of the buildings. "…we're not doing so good awareness-wise today, apparently."

"To be fair, it's been a while since we've gotten some rest," Zane commented with a shrug. "let's see if Lil'll let us have some after this." The group walked over to Moze just as Clay started to walk off.

"No word on Dalton, yet." Moze shook her head. "Clay's gonna go see if he can track him down. Though that sorta shit should be handled by—"

"A master huntsperson," FL4K finished. "but, I will Clay to it. I need to make sure Meat-Thief hasn't eaten any bones. They're poor for his diet." The robot walked off, leaving Amara to peek her head inside the blown-open building. For the most part, it was a run-down piece of shit, but there were some weapons crates scattered about. She could probably get something new.

"AUUUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!" She sighed when she heard maddened yelling. Seemed another wave of COV lunatics were charging the town. Honestly, Amara was surprised they hadn't learned by now. Or, at the very least, saw what happened to the last lot of COV fuckers.

"_Hey, Vault Hunters, got a lock on Dalton," _Clay said into Amara's earpiece. _"but, unfortunately, it looks like we're gonna have to secure the town…again. Hope you're ready to fight, because they ready to die." _Amara needed to remember that one-liner for later.

For the time, the Siren busied herself with gunning down any approaching cultists, peppering them in the heads and chests with her shotgun and providing covering fire for the others. The new mob of cultists were tedious, yes, but tedious rarely meant dangerous for them when it came to the cultists themselves.

"_Oh, so THIS is the frequency the twins use," _That cold, smarmy voice of Aurelia buzzed in her earpiece. _"Odd. Moving on, Vault Hunters, I've hired some people to get the Key Fragment for me, so it'd be wonderful if you could simply lay down and let them kill you. Sure, it cost a small fortune, which I'll earn by simply taking a nap, but, really, I'd rather not spend more time than I must entertaining whores like you." _

"Do I need to start with you?" FL4K spoke up.

"_Mhm, I'm bored enough to hear what a machine like you can process for me. Give me your best shot, so I can casually discard it."_

FL4K actually took a breath. Amara wasn't even remotely sure how they did that.

"Your money will never truly make you happy, and because of that you seek to make everyone and anyone in your company as unhappy as you while you keep a façade of being this astute baroness. You loathe your brother because, even with dismal funding, he's always been happy and even found love, whereas you will forever have a pit in your stomach. A pit that not even the Vault's riches can fill. And, let's not forget, your antics always leave you more paranoid than an overfed skag. But, do please discard my insult here. We both know that's all you're good at; merely discarding your dignity."

"…well fuck." Moze said after a brief delay.

"…_well, I'll admit, that struck a nerve. I'll be sure to take your motherboard as a souvenir, robot. I'd go for your brain in jar, but you've just demonstrated you don't have one considering you mouthed off at me." _

"I welcome the challenge." The call ended and Amara just, sighed.

"Leave it to FL4K to, once again, incite our foes into rage." The Siren put another round into the nearest bandit, dropping the fucker as, gradually, they thinned the herd and cleared the COV out.

"_Hmm, dear business partners, are you sure your…family, and I use the term loosely, is up to the task?" _For a moment, Amara thought Aurelia was trying to be intimidating again. She deduced a second later the bitch probably forgot to change her ECHO frequency. _"I don't want to use the words 'blistering incompetence' but…" _

"_Then don't." _Troy snapped. Seemed they were at each other's throats.

Good; the more they tore each other apart, the less they focused on their followers being slaughtered. Amara could live with that.

* * *

"Well done, beasts," FL4K gingerly carved some meat from a severed leg, tossing each juicy piece to their beasts who, naturally, snapped them up and wolfed them down. "You hunted wonderfully today, though we should work on your cooperation in the future." The Beastmaster looked over to see the others were speaking with Clay, probably getting things organized as the robot pat the severed, skinned head of the COV champion, one called 'Long Arm Smasher'…stupid name, but he made a good trophy. The town was theirs, though the gunsmith was still unaccounted for. Listening in, they heard he was being held in a COV lockup; Fort Sunshine. Ironic name, considering the madness those fools typically spouted.

Unfortunately, it meant they would not have time to rest. Another hunt was to commence. Hopefully no one in the town minded if they recharged their core using one of the buildings…

Still, for the moment, there was some downtime. Downtime FL4K could use to further move their plans along. Their finger pressed down onto their ECHO and, quickly, they changed the frequency away from their team's and, of course, to a secure channel with the fiery bitch Tyreen…it was time to poke the nest.

"Your attack could have went better." FL4K chided.

"_Psh, we were just goin' easy on you. Don't wanna bruise up the superfans too much." _

"You and I both know that's a lie, and that you should perhaps reevaluate who you work with. Your baroness is a liability."

"_And how's THAT, Vault Thief?"_

"Her brother spelled it out; if she had your 'charisma' she could easily run the COV. What makes you assume she won't lust after such a thing one day? Free, endless minions, who'll gladly die for their mistress? Minions she'll never need to spend a dollar on, for her very existence drives them to fight and serve? Your ally only cares about becoming richer and richer; naturally, she'll take every opportunity to get it. Even going so far as to coerce your brother."

"_The FUCK's that supposed to mean?" _FL4K mashed a button on their ECHO and, swiftly, sent over an ECHO log they happened to stumble across while leaving the manor with the others. A log that contained some _choice_ sounds…and some special bedroom talk between Troy and Aurelia.

Honestly, they were meant for each other; they were both hideous, inside and out.

"She's already seduced your brother, Tyreen," FL4K spoke again. "And we both know he's already stronger than you. _Vastly_ stronger. If she wanted to take over the COV and get him to aid her, imagine how easy it would be? Especially since you failed to do your homework on how dangerous your 'business partner' is, considering she worked alongside Handsome Jack." They ended the call and turned to walk back to the others. Little by little, they whittled at Tyreen's confidence. And, of course, little by little, she was growing less confident in who she could keep close; even her own sibling. It was only a matter of time before the fool snapped and turned on those close to her. And, when it came, FL4K planned to take good care of her head when it was all said and done.

They even picked a nice place for it; right next to where their pets defecated.

* * *

(Hope everyone's keeping safe amid this pandemic. It's sorta annoying, but if we stay smart, we'll be fine. I'll also see about churning out more stories and content for you all so there'll be more to keep you all entertained. It's the best I can do.

Now, to address some reviews.

Will I be adding in more 'wacky comedic' moments? Most likely. I sometimes sprinkle them in from time to time and, in the future, I may opt to incorporate more non-canon chapters to give the team time to breathe. Of course, these moments can easily allow for the very comedy Borderlands is known for.

For Brick and Mordecai being reduced to extras? I'm conflicted as to why that's a thing, yes. One "idea" could be they wanted to get away from the Vault Hunting thing, but considering the stuff they all went through, it's hard to imagine them just up and departing to simply become mercenaries. So, I'll try to address that and, even, work them back into a major point. And, yes, the reveal about Typhon DeLeon and his ties to the antagonists came a bit too late, but at the same time, the writers didn't leave many options as the lore said he lived on Nekrotafeyo, if I'm spelling that right, away from the universe to protect his kids. However, like with me keeping Maya alive, I can perhaps find a way to make things work better with him. I'll have to see.

As for the New-U stations? I've always assumed they were both…well canon and non-canon, hence why I brought them up in the earlier stages of this project and showed they were just defunct with Hyperion having pulled out of Pandora.

I'll address some more reviews in time. So, keep 'em coming; I always like to hear from my fans!

Also, there's a small chance I could be working on another Predator fanfiction in the future if this Predator novel thing I'm trying to do doesn't work out. Considering who currently owns the rights and I'm on the line with someone who can help…there's a _small_ chance.)


	30. A Needed Breather

"The fuck are we doing here, old man?" Moze asked as Zane took a seat on a gravestone. A bottle of rum was in hand and the Operative let out a sigh.

"We're takin' a breather." Zane took a long, burning swig of his drink. "A breather we need, Mozzy Moze."

"But, don't we need to get that gunsmith?" Amara questioned.

"We do, yeah, but know what we also need?" Another swig. "A lil' break. We've been goin' nonstop ever since we got here. If anythin', the only one who got a break's FL4K over there, and that's cause they got in a scrap with Troy."

"And made him my bitch, I might add." The robot added proudly. "But, Zane is correct. I could use a breather so I can try to recharge my core via solar power."

"Wait…" Moze glanced at FL4K quizzically. "You can recharge via solar energy?"

"Yes and no." FL4K sat down, jacket at their side and arms crossed. "I need to be motionless for a time. Hard to stay motionless when a psycho's rushing me, intending to blow himself into fiery chunks."

"True. But, yeah, we could use a moment to gather ourselves," Amara took a seat on the ground, legs crossed. "and collect our thoughts. Like, for one, how exactly are we getting into this fort safely? We've broken into high security areas before, yes, but this feels…different."

"Different how?" Moze asked.

"Well, for one, the twins can apparently make super soldiers." Amara huffed. "We're bound to encounter more of these 'Anointed' in the fort. They may put up a bigger fight than the last one we fought."

"Which is why they'll make for a good hunt." FL4K stroked the head of their…rather large spiderant, almost lovingly. "A hunt I will share with my pack. And, more importantly, if we succeed in denying the twins the Vault's guardian, we'll strike them."

"Yeah…bout that," Zane chugged his drink. "Lil's plan ain' the most solid one I've committed to. Like…she wants us to open _all_ the Vaults and get rid of the power, sorely to deny it to the COV…doesn' that got a lotta loopholes? Like us bein' at this for weeks? Maybe even months, given the COV's shite?"

"It's got quite a few, but I don't think that's her grand scheme." Moze piped up. "Like, as far as I've seen, their goal's to open this Grand Vault and reap the rewards, if any. Lilith's probably trying to buy time until we can successfully spearhead an assault on the COV and kill the twins. Bandits just follow the strongest guy, right? We take out their gods, they might fight among themselves for who knows how long."

"Or someone else could take the reins." Amara stated. "But, thoughts for later. Right now, let's stick to Lilith's plan, and remove every Vault on the map the twins have. I trust her, so I want to follow her plan to fruition."

"I'm not sayin' I don' trust her," Zane finished his drink and tossed the bottle to the side, shooting it out the air. "but I'm sayin' we should think of other plans, in case we can't keep goin' with this one. Cause I've dealt with morons like these twins before in my prime; they can only take so many kickin's 'fore they get desperate. And desperate's a few letters 'way from drastic."

"It's…more than a few, old man." Moze chuckled.

"Ya know what I mean." Zane grumbled. "Still, it's only a matter of time 'fore they get desperate, and that's when they pull out that dangerous, risky shite. The kinda shite that tops their attack on Maya. Fuck, they might even nut up and try attackin' the ship while we're asleep."

"Yet at the same time, that's what we seek. Never interrupt an enemy in the progress of making a mistake, and desperate foes make mistakes. It's as I told Moze earlier." The Gunner perked up when her name was called. "All we have to do is continuously trifle and mess with their operations. They'll inevitably expose themselves. If anything, I scold myself for not killing Troy when the chance was practically handed to me. But, in my defense, I wanted him to _grovel_ before he perished."

"Aye, I ain' usually vindictive towards the guys I gotta kill buuuuuut," Zane chuckled. "these twins got it comin'. They're cunts. Cunts who need to get beat the fuck up."

"Amen." Amara agreed.

Zane nodded. "Imma grab some more drinks. Y'all want any?"

"See if they have something sweet."

"Ditto but add a little bitterness to mine."

"Fetch me something strong for my beasts."

"…FL4K, I ain' no animal expert, but ain' pets not supposed to have booze?"

The robot pointed towards their jabber. "Meat-Thief can drink…well…he _shouldn't_, but he can…he's earned the reward." Zane just sighed and turned to walk. He still appreciated these quiet moments. They let him reflect and bond better to his friends. And, thankfully, they could continue to have these moments. He'd ride things out with them as long as he could go.

They were a group of weirdos, but that's fine. Weirdos tended to have the most fun, anyhow.

* * *

(Lil non-canon short chapter here. I wanted to give the chars a lil' moment to relax and reflect. Asking questions about their campaign and figuring out what to do and what not to do. Mostly because, logically, Lilith's plan is a touch…dangerous, but at least it worked out in the game, at the cost of a lot of key figures biting the bullet.

Now, for some review responses:

I come up with great insults because…well I know where to aim, I suppose. It's hard to explain properly. The goal of an insult is to hit someone where it hurts, and considering I know about the antagonists well enough emotionally, it's not hard to properly write hurtful insults.

The Happy Together trailer was…odd. I liked it, but I can see why it's not for everyone. Still, I hope those who didn't like it are at least enjoying this story I'm putting a lot of effort into.

As for Guns, Love, and Tentacles? Honestly, I haven't played it yet. Due to circumstances IRL, and my professional work ramping up, I haven't had time to pick BL3 back up and buy the DLCs for it, especially with Predator: Hunting Grounds set to come out next week. I write things how they are by following walkthroughs and, from those, creating detailed chapters…mostly because in the early stages I tried writing as I played, but I quickly realized that was a tedious process as it meant it'd both lengthen the story dramatically, and have to keep up a speedy playthrough so chapters don't lag behind. So, apologies for that.

Until then, tune in next time, and keep the reviews coming! Good or bad, I always love to hear from my fans!)


	31. The Path to the Fort

"Well, here we are, boys and girls. Fort Sunshine." Zane parked the Technical and hopped out, taking a good look at the fort as he did. Said fort was in the distance, being a massive, stone and metal place, with the only way to it being via a stone bridge that, of course, the COV were around.

Or, rather, _were_ around. Most of them were on the ground, dead or dying, courtesy of the team's crazy, murderous robot. Zane didn't even see them drop. He was too busy getting the car in the right spot.

"_Uh…well shit…hey sis? Those fucking Vault Thieves are trying to rescue that gunsmith you snatched. Do your thing! Your…weird teleporting thing." _

"_Yeah sure—but because I want to. NOT because you asked."_

"_Whatever! Just do it already and make it snappy!"_

"_Asshole."_

Seemed they were already bickering. Zane grinned at that. Said grin was gone when he remembered he said 'teleporting'.

A bright flash behind him told him why. He whirled around to see an assortment of COV fuckers quite literally showing up out of thin air, no doubt teleported via Tyreen's crude powers. The Operative dropped down his barrier and sent his drone out, motioning for the others to take cover with him as he open fired at the cultists, dropping a few rushing psychos and wounding others.

"Seems the twins ain' too keen on one 'nother, FL4K." The Operative commended. "How long 'til ya think they start clawin' one 'nother's eyes out?"

"If I had to guess," FL4K popped a psycho's head with their sniper. "a day or two. Already, their discord is building. If it grows as projected, they'll turn on each other like hungry skags and devour one another…also like hungry skags."

"Eww…I didn't need that thought in my fucking head." Moze groaned.

"What? It's a funny sight, Mozzy Moze. At least 'til the winner tries to swallow the other whole." Zane chuckled.

"Let's focus on these COV, then we can make jokes about things eating one another."

Zane smirked. Amara frowned. "Make a joke and I'm throwing you off the bridge."

"Fine fine…I won' make any jokes about eatin' out." Bamboozled.

The group continued to fight, focus firing any cultists who got too close and picking off those who got too far. In no time at all, the bandits were dead, and…the way forward was still blocked off, as far as Zane saw.

"Huh…usually, killin' everyone opens the way to the next area…least that's how it was in those old games me brothers 'n I played." One of said games was a reason his brothers tried to kill him. Not his fault he's good at _Cartel_, that old shite boardgame about owning properties.

Also wasn't his fault he kept owning the drug labs.

"_Path's blocked? Damn. Guess y'all need to find another way in. Take a look around; there should be an old lookout nearby that might offer a nice vantage." _Zane looked up and noticed…well something in the distance, as well logs passing overhead, courtesy of a crane.

Looking at it gave him an amusing idea.

"_Well, the Vault Thieves are still alive. Guess I should've Anointed a few more of the family," _Troy was ranting now. Zane was tempted to just mute the fucker, but then he'd miss the inevitable discord between him and his sister. _"That's the REAL power, sis."_

"_Yeah, hey remind me why I kept you alive all these years, dickweed?"_

"_What? C'mon, don't be like that! We're having fun—and she walked away…well then. I'm still right."_ Zane made a mental note to have some scotch prepared to enjoy while they killed each other. Who knows? He might find a way to sneak a camera into their lil' headquarters and record the whole thing.

It'd definitely sell and be a fun watch for everyone on Sanctuary.

* * *

"So…you want us to do what?" Moze asked incredulously as she and the other Vault Hunters got out the Technical once again, now in front of some sort of…lumberyard? She couldn't be entirely sure. With how most things looked on the planet, she wasn't sure if that was intentional or caused by something wrecking the place.

It was probably both.

"Ya want the short version or the long one?" Zane asked.

"I want _any _version, you old fuck." The Gunner grunted.

The old man chuckled. "Simple, we're gonna hitch a ride on the crane system and go right into the fort from there. Quick, easy, and it'll probably involve killin' a lotta bandit fuckers."

"…alright, I'll admit, that's a good idea. A first, honestly." Moze nodded.

Zane frowned. "A first? I got plenty of good ideas, Mozzy Moze. Like stealin' those EVA helmets."

"I…you…" She huffed. "Let's just go." She loaded her assault rifle and got to moving. She hated giving Zane the satisfaction of being right.

"Moze, you good?" She looked to her right. Amara walked next to her, loading her Maliwan shotgun and setting it on her back.

"Yeah, I just hate giving that old fucker the satisfaction of knowing he's right."

"Then do what I do," The Siren shrugged. "Ignore it. Thought we were over this."

"I know, but," She sighed. "Old habits die hard, apparently."

"Then help them die harder." She grinned. Moze couldn't help but to chuckle at that.

"Yeah—shit!" She ducked behind a crate when a buzz-axe whirled past. "…so, we were supposed to go where? Cause it looks like they're already there."

"Loading Docks," FL4K uncloaked nearby Moze, holding the severed head of a cultist. "Once we arrive, we'll have to board some of the logs, then jump. So…I hope you're shock absorbent."

"My shields are shock resistant!" Moze glared.

"That isn't the shock I mean." The robot cloaked again and darted off.

"…fuck." Moze caught on to what they meant. "I'm sure we'll be fine."

"Of course we will, Moze." Moze found the Siren's presence comforting…not just as a friend but something else. She couldn't put her finger on it.

Maybe later she could figure out what that weird feeling was. When she wasn't at risk of having her head blown off. That'd be a good idea.

* * *

"So…we just jump on?" Amara crossed her arms and watched another bundle of logs sail past. The others were nearby with Zane being the spotter for…his dumb idea.

Honestly, it wasn't the most dangerous thing they've done, but still, felt…_dumb_.

"Yep," Zane answered, stepping back and rolling his shoulders. "Get a runnin' start, leap on, and don' fall. I don' think any of us are fall proof or whatever the fuck the word is."

"I am, but my beasts aren't." FL4K said. "It's one reason I left them at the town. Had a slight hunch something like this could happen."

"They're gonna be fine, right? Moze asked.

"Oh, definitely. I even gave Meat-Thief a shotgun…let's…just hope he doesn't shoot any of the townsfolk." Amara was now silently worried, but she didn't show it.

"Oi, ride's here. Leap on!" Zane leapt onto the bundle of logs as it sailed past. Amara did the same, as did FL4K.

"Shit!" Moze mistimed her jump and fell, though Amara quickly snagged her hand and tugged her onto the logs. "Fucking…thanks, Amara."

"It's what friends are for." She smirked and…did her best not to look down. She wasn't afraid of heights, no, but she didn't like being reminded they were _way_ up in the air and en route to a fortress crawling with both COV and, probably, Troy's Anointed.

"_You'll have to excuse Ty, she's not used to, uh, sharing the spotlight." _Amara's mild fear became malice when she heard Troy's smarmy voice in her earpiece. _"Y'see, while we were growin' up, our parents never let her outta their sight. She'd leech anything she could get her hands on. Heh…that was a riot…then our mom died. That one's on her. After that…well…dad decided we'd never leave his side. He never SAID it, but I knew. He saw Tyreen as a monster—and I was just a freak, of course. But, we left him, and went to Pandora after a series of mishaps and adventures. What that old fucker didn't get that, these days, a freak with an ECHOstram can be a star."_

"…and what point do you have to tell me your entire life story?"

"_Eh, bored and ranting. Oh, right! Also makin' some Anointed. Hot and ready for you all. So, play nice. I won't let 'em kill you. After all, I need a body to leech from." _The cold way he said that made Amara's malice fade to fear for a flicker of a second. It reminded her that, once again, he could take her powers too, and leave her like Lilith or worse!

"That ain't happening, fuckface," Amara looked over to see Moze mashing her finger down on her own earpiece. "You get close to Amara and I'm introducing you to Louie. He's my gun, and then I'll introduce him to your fucking kneecaps. So piss off, and don't contact her again." Troy, thankfully, didn't respond. Either Moze's threat pacified him, or he went off to do some bullshit.

"Thanks, Moze."

"Hey, it's like you said," She shrugged. "It's what friends are for."

"Indeed." Maybe the fort wouldn't be so bad with friends like them sticking close. Sure, Clay referred to it as a hellhole, but they'd be fine. They got this far, after all.

They could afford to go a bit further.

* * *

FL4K landed on the ground first, or rather on the concrete first. The log, thankfully, passed over a structure or two that, from the Beastmaster's calculation would dampen their fall and reduce any possible damage. Looking up, they saw their pack did the same, though only Zane nearly tripped and fell. Better than what the projected outcome was.

A bullet whizzed by and FL4K was reminded the place was crawling with Children of the Vault. "Zane, create your cover and open fire." FL4K stepped away and, like many times, cloaked themselves to continue their hunt. With the others protected, they could hunt freely, and dispatch as many of the foes as they could.

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

They fired their sniper again and again from a newer vantage. Heads popped into skull confetti as, of course, their prey panicked. The Beastmaster took cover when fire was concentrated on them, courtesy of what looked like turrets against the walls. Those wouldn't be good.

Said turrets exploded a second later. FL4K looked and sighted Moze's Iron Bear, with the Siren in the back, peppering foes with the mounted turret. Their symbiosis was interesting; amusing, but interesting none the less. The Beastmaster made a note to study it closer and see if they could encourage their beasts to do the same. But, for now, bandits needed to die.

It took a considerable amount of time, but the Children of the Vault's numbers were thinning. Receding. There were more within the fortress, but for the time, it seemed like they were either pulling back, or were just plain done fighting.

Both outcomes were mildly disappointing. But now they had a moment to breathe, as the way forward was cleared. It gave the Beastmaster an idea.

"Zane," The Operative looked up when he was called. "Would you like to harass the twins today? I'd usually do it, but, as a pack, I feel like we should all share in their humiliation and discord."

"Sure, why not? Lemme dial 'em up." Zane mashed his ECHO a few times, moving to sit down on a crate.

"_What the fuck? Who is this?" _Tyreen was the one to pick up. FL4K would have went for Troy, but this was a better outcome. She was the emotionally vulnerable one, after all.

"Jus' someone who thinks ya should watch yerself."

"_Vault Thief…what the fuck do you—"_

"Didja know yer brother told us yer life story? Rivetin' stuff, 'goddess'."

"…_he did?" _She sounded frail. Delightful.

"Yep. And, and this is jus' me readin' 'tween the lines, but it sounds like he doesn' trust ya either. Might view ya like a monster too. So, good luck with that." He hung up and pat his thighs. "So, how'd I do, tinman?"

"Wonderful, though I'd recommend, next time, go for Troy. We want both twins to be at each other's throats, not one, and he's insecure as it is."

"Ah, shite, sorry."

"It's fine. Inevitably, they'll turn on each other. We're simply hastening the inevitable in favor of an outcome that benefits us all."

"And…that outcome is the entire COV folding, right?" Moze asked.

"Mhm," FL4K nodded. "Unless they don't come to blows. But, even if they avoid from killing one another and simply bicker, it'll bring their plans to a halt as their followers pick sides. But, for now," FL4K reloaded their sniper. "The fort awaits. Let us liberate the gunsmith, and make the twins regret their actions even further."

They were going to enjoy themselves here. Sure, Clay called it a hellhole, but they called it hunting grounds.

* * *

(Short chapter. I wanted to use this chapter both as a prelude to a harder area on Eden-6 and also to add some more story and plot. And, here, I'm even trying to sneak in little references here and there, and with Moze and Amara being close. Dunno why. Seems like something that makes sense.

Plus, I wanted to answer some reviews. Always view them as a bit of a highlight.

-Are there any other games I'd write a story for? Well, there's plenty. Many of them I've already touched on, such as _Danganronpa, Warhammer, _and even _Monster Hunter_. But, with professional work growing and me staring a new job, I've put all non-essential projects on hold to not overwork myself. This story, of course, is essential because of all the love and support it's garnered.

-My thoughts on the Borderlands Science minigame? Hard to say. Haven't really looked into it. I saw a video on it in my recommended feed on Youtube, but I didn't click it and I forgot about it for a while. But maybe Monday after I get off work I can check it out.

-I had a slight hunch the Wedding DLC was full of hentai references…still funny, though. I'll have to pick it up when I'm not playing Predator this weekend.

Have a safe night everyone, and I'll do what I can to mold this story into my professional schedule and make the next chapter even better!

Take care!)


	32. A Dying Clue

Zane kept his handgun at the ready as the group moved. The area was clear and piles of dead bandits littered the ground, but he still had a hunch the twins were gonna pull some bullshite and try to either throw another one of those purple fuckers at them or do something to split them up.

Both were also an option…unfortunately. Not much was out of the realm of possibility with the fuckheads.

"…well, sector secure, then. Nothing else is gonna happen." Moze sighed. Zane stared at her.

"Mozzy Moze, ain'tcha ever see those old films? Ya NEVER say shite's in the clear til—" The doors ahead flew open as something strode out. Something _clearly_ dangerous. It was another cultist, yeah, a big one, with that same purple skin tone and glowing eyes as the other fucker they fought back in the manor…which meant.

"_Heh, it's been real, Vault Thief," _Troy chided over his ECHO. _"but Muldock over there's gotta put you four down. Don't feel too bad, though. Least this'll make for entertainment."_

"Oh, like yar sex tape with Hammerlock's sister? Yeah, FL4K showed me," Zane shot the robot a look. "Where the fuck did ya even get that, now that we're on the subject?"

"I know a friend of a friend."

Troy, of course, was silent. "That's what I thought. Might wanna go damage control that shite 'fore it's all over the ."

"_Psh, why? So everyone'll see me banging a billionaire?" _

"'Fore she puts a round in yar arse for lettin' it get leaked." Zane returned his focus to the Anointed just as the fucker shook himself off and prepared his gun.

"Secure the island, family!" The crazed, empowered cultist cried. "I'll slaughter the heretics with my own hands!"

"Oh, if I had a pint every time someone said that…" Zane murmured. He heard Amara open fire at the fucker and Zane's confidence died down when the empowered cultist raised his hand, producing a purple shield that…simply absorbed the shots.

"…shite, when were these fuckers bulletproof?"

"Dunno, don't care!" Moze was already in Iron Bear, laying down fire on the Anointed who slowly skidded back from the hail of gunfire coming his way. "This one of the fuckers who gave y'all trouble?"

"Sorta; last one was bigger!" Amara called, chucking a grenade at the Anointed as more cultists appeared, raining down fire on the team, forcing Zane to throw up his Barrier. They alternated between shooting the encroaching forces and also the Anointed who, for some fucking reason, shrugged off a lot of bullets, but clearly, Zane could tell it was affecting him. They just needed time.

"I have an idea," Amara called. "But you'll need to distract him for a moment."

"Way ahead of ya." Zane loaded more rounds into his handgun and open fired, watching the shots connect with the Anointed's head, forcing the dour idiot to shift focus to him. "Oi! Yar mother was a whore!"

"I KNOW!" The Anointed roared and charged towards him. The old man remained calm as he tossed his Digiclone out, ensuring it was far enough away before, with the push of a button, swapping places with it and causing the hard-light clone to fade when it was struck by the empowered cultist's punch. Now, with a new vantage, Zane was able to rain fire onto his foe's unprotected back, causing the enraged idiot to charge again, though that was ended when _something_ struck his back, causing him to double over…and finally collapse.

"Well, that did it," Zane holstered his gun as, like the last Anointed, Muldock's body was rapidly encased in…he wanted to gues Eridium. He'd ask Tannis later. "Nice trick, Mara Mar."

"Not really a trick," She reloaded her shotgun, setting it to the side just as the last of the cultists were cleaned up by FL4K and Moze. "I just charged up an astral fist and sent it with enough force and velocity to rupture his body."

"…no offense, Amara," Moze began after clearing her throat. "But why haven't you been doing this sooner?"

"Takes a moment or two to charge, and is _easily_ avoidably by deft enemies. Regardless," She motioned to the doors. "We have a gunsmith to rescue, correct?"

"Right, whatshis face—"

"Done." Zane just…stared at FL4K. The Beastmaster had someone slung across their shoulder. "He explained to me the rather cliché reason; the Children of the Vault wanted to force him to produce weapons for them, and when he declined, they opted to capture and torment him until he surrendered to them."

"Y…yeah." The man wearily croaked. "A-Also, and I'm not…complaining…did you really need to have your skag drag me out my cell?"

"Wanted to make sure it wasn't a trap. Mr. Chew's practically invincible nowadays anyhow." Zane just sighed. Least they could get the guy back to the town and hear what Clay needed them to do next…but honestly, he wanted a drink.

He was going to rob the everloving SHIT out of any bars en route. Might as well.

* * *

"Well, these are some nice guns…" Moze mused to herself as she looked over the rifle she acquired from that gunsmith's cache. She was…skeptical to touch the key, considering he told her not to ask where it came from, but the payoff was somewhat worth it; an assault rifle aptly named "Dastardly Hand of Glory"…weird name for a gun, but it looked cool enough.

Even came with a nifty scope, too; she wasn't a fan of assault rifles with scopes unless on black ops work but she could make do. They were _sorta_ on black ops work, when one thought about things.

"Yo, Moze," She turned her head to Amara. The Siren stood in the doorway, holding an antique looking shotgun. "You want this one? One of FL4K's beasts found it and…well it's not my taste."

"Wow, thanks," The Gunner reached up to accept the gun, looking over it and giving it a test aim. "never really handled a shotgun much, but now's a good time to learn, right?"

"Heh, yeah. We're in…quite the situation, speaking lightly, but we'll get through it. We've gotten through worse jams, haven't we?"

"Of course, like that fucking moon base!"

"Or when we killed that Vault monster," Amara added with a grin. "Ah…a…shame that it led to things worsening." The way her voice trailed off worried Moze. Amara was always ready for a fight and never ready to back down, yet she sounded…unsure of herself, for once. It was something she didn't like to hear.

"Hey," The Gunner spoke in a firm, clear voice. "We're gonna be alright, Amara. Twins can't do shit to any of us; too scared to. So, we're gonna fuck 'em up, and then we're gonna…I guess cruise together. All of us."

"I'd like that; can't really imagine going solo again, given all we've experienced together."

"Agreed." Moze fell silent for a second as that…pang shot through her again. She still didn't really understand it but, for the most part, she…well she didn't _hate_ the feeling, and all she knew about it was it came around whenever she was around Amara. It was…strange, to say the least. But welcome. It almost made her feel giddy staring up at the tall, imposing Siren.

The Gunner shook her head and focused. "A-Anyways, we should get back to Hammerlock and Wainwright, right?"

"Most likely; they probably have an idea on where we're heading next. Good thing, too. It's getting to be nightfall, and I'd rather not be forced to spend a night on this weird planet." The Siren sauntered off and Moze's gaze remained glued to her retreating figure.

She needed to talk to someone about these…pangs, but right now, she couldn't agree more with Amara; she refused to spend a night on the planet. The mosquitos were probably as big as fucking _skags_!

* * *

"Good to hear y'all freed Reliance from COV oppression, Vault Hunters," Wainwright commended. Amara merely shrugged in response as he approached a weird looking machine in the center of the lodge, one that reminded her of a _very_ ancient record player…albeit a bit fancier looking. "And while y'all were gone, I got this damn thing workin', so," He gestured tenderly to the machine. "Which one of you wants to do the honors, and let us all hear the last words of Montgomery Jackobs?"

"I…suppose I will," Amara stepped over to the machine and rested her finger on what she assumed was the on switch. "though I _really_ hope I don't accidentally break this thing…" She flicked it and, thankfully, the message began to play.

…said message she barely understood: the speaker was clearly intoxicated, slurring over his words, and all-around terrified of something. So…well, so much for the last words of Montgomery Jakobs.

However, a few of the words she _did_ piece together: the Grand Reserve, and the Oily Graveyard, and the Family Jewel. Those were where the key was. So, that's where they needed to look—

"_DAMNATION! Ugh, this gut rot's chewing through me like pig through a pile of fuckin' apples! Aw I gotta SHIT…!"_

…Wainwright's father did not win an award for famous last words. Far from it.

"Alright…well that's enough." Wainwright reached over and cut the device off, though clearly with some mild embarrassment. "Now, the Family Jewel is my father's ship; crashed out in the jungle not too long after his death. Go find it; if my father's cryptic message is anything to go by, there outta be a Key Fragment on board. Alister and I will investigate the other two clues; leave the COV no leads."

"A wise choice, though I tend to dislike dividing a pack." FL4K spoke up. Amara turned to leave, though she felt her ECHO vibrating…that couldn't be good.

"_So, you jack offs are lookin' for the key fragment?" _Troy snidely remarked.

"_Yeah, let us know when you got it open; was SUPER nice to have my dinner waiting for me when I got there." _Tyreen added. Amara growled under her breath.

"Ya might get sloppy seconds this time, arseholes," Zane said into his own ECHO as he walked by Amara. "y'all ain' getting' this one, and if y'all want it, come get it."

"_Psh, and what says we won't?" _Tyreen asked. Amara could tell already she was sneering on the other end.

"Dunno," Zane replied. "What says our crazed robot won't beat your ass like he did yar brother? Bet he's still seethin' over that arse-kickin'."

"_Shut up! He got lucky!"_

"T'was never luck," FL4K chimed in. "It was merely me knowing my prey, and knowing you spend more time speaking ill of your sister than being threatening."

"_Troy, what the fuck?!" _

"_H-He's lying, sis! Honest—"_

"I am null-gendered, also. Robots don't have dicks. Something, sadly, you and I have in common." And, like every other time the twins were verbally abused, they went quiet.

"Thanks, you two."

"Thank the murder bot," Zane chuckled. "Never knew insultin' those fuckers was so fun! Mozzy Moze, ya gotta try it when they try talkin' shite again."

"…you know I'll just throw curse words at them, right?"

"Eh, that works. Anythin' works; their combined ego's about as strong as Moxxi's happy hour menu."

"…I…don't get the joke." Amara said.

"He means the drinks are weak and virtually alcohol free and, therefore, they're weak and pathetic," FL4K spoke up. "Speaking of, why _does_ Moxxi make those drinks so…lackluster?"

"Somethin' bout not losin' product. Lotta alcoholics aboard the ship..." Amara sighed as she watched them go back and forth. Like she told Moze, she couldn't really imagine herself leaving the group when the job was all said and done. So, she was gonna stick with them as long as she could. Ride the fun out as best she could.

And she could ensure it was gonna be something special.

* * *

(Short, weirder chapter. When I got home from work, I was a bit burned out, but still had time to churn this out. Work is…taxing, but I need to start pre-writing the chapter again every day like I used to so I can avoid having to scramble like this. Shouldn't happen again.

So, reviews.

What inspired me to write this? Honestly, I got inspired and bored after playing with my brother, wrote one or two chapters, and when it blew up, I said "fuck it" and kept going. Now, we're sitting at over thirty chapters and we still have a ways to go before this train ride's over.

Yes, there _might_ be romance between Amara and Moze; it's just something that "feels" right, but I'm trying to write it in a realistic, fluid way. Something that just clicks, I guess. Hopefully incorporating such a thing doesn't cause any discourse.

I appreciate the props for the burns I've delivered the twins; something we all wish the chars did when the two fuckers opened their mouths.

Stay safe out there; I heard a lot of states are re-opening things up, so let's hope we don't have another major outbreak.)


	33. An Informative Break

"So, we're about to go lookin' for the Family Jewel," Zane sipped from a bottle of whiskey he found in the lodge. Sure, it was warm, but booze was booze, as far as he was concerned. "and no one else finds that name funny as fuck."

"Maybe it's because we're all mature enough not to, old man." Moze grunted, settling herself in the back of the technical. "Everyone but you, apparently."

"No shame in findin' shite funny when yar old, Mozzy Moze." Another sip. "By the way, may wanna hop out the car. We ain' leavin' yet."

"Hmm? I thought Wainwright gave us a location." Amara asked, leaning against the side of the bandit vehicle. "Usually, that means we go for it. And get it done with the usual finesse we always do."

"True, but guess who _doesn't_ know where it is, for once?" Zane asked. "The fuckin' COV. For once, we can take this one at our own pace, 'cause they ain' got no leads on where to look."

"He makes a valid point." FL4K was currently feeding their Spiderant with a…severed hand they somehow found. "The Children of the Vault will inevitably locate the Family Jewel and head towards it, but they will die. Miserably."

"…how do you know that?" Moze questioned incredulously.

"It's nearby the Voracious Canopy," They cut a finger off and gingerly fed it to their beast. "an area rich in dangerous predators and hyper-aggressive fauna, like the many therapods I wish to tame and domesticate. The cultists will be a meal for them, and their gods will abandon them."

"Beasts you haven't tamed or hunted?" Amara chuckled. "That's impressive. They must be quite dangerous, then."

"I never said I haven't hunted them," The murderous robot corrected. "Just haven't tamed. It's hard to; they're intelligent, yes, but they're not as intelligent as Mr. Chew, Broodless, and Meat-Thief. All three have a history of being domesticated, both on Pandora and on Eden-6. In fact, jabbers tend to be treated not as beasts in some areas, but…well more or less as patrons for bars."

"…they serve _monkeys_ booze?" Zane deadpanned. "Like…why the fuck would they waste perfectly good booze like that?"

"Many people on Eden-6 are capable of making moonshine, Zane, and therefore can afford to give it away to the native fauna for amusement. I'm…quite surprised you never knew that, given your penchant for drinking."

"Yeeesh, ya answered yar own question. I ain' a fan of moonshine." He took another swig from his drink, being fully aware of Moze's confused look. "What? I don' like moonshine."

"Bullshit. You'll drink _anything_!"

"Not everythin'. Moonshine ain' somethin' I take straight from the tap. Mostly 'cause of bad memories." He shrugged.

"And what memories are those?" Amara questioned.

"Back when me brothers and I weren' tryin' to kill one another, Captain offered me some moonshine he 'personally made'. Found out after drinkin' it he brewed the shite in a fuckin' toilet." Zane grimaced. "Explained that aftertaste."

Moze covered her mouth with her arm. Zane knew she was snickering but trying her best not to show it. Amara wasn't; she was openly snickering. "Silver linin', it wasn' a used toilet...not recently. Still, dunno where these fuckers make their moonshine. For all I know, that's probably normal 'round here."

"It is." FL4K added. "Moonshine is typically made wherever the user can store a sizable amount of liquid…often, it's in old outhouses."

"You sure know a lot about toilet liquor and dangerous beasts, FL4K," Amara mused. "Then again, you _did_ come here at one time, right?"

They nodded. "That I did. Was a lot different back when I came to hunt. More beasts running around, but less humans to serve as bait. It was around that time I, of course, found and accepted Meat-Thief into the pack."

"Yeah, how the fuck did that happen, anyhow?" Zane was only slightly interested in changing the topic; he really wanted to get the topic away from him drinking toilet moonshine when he was younger.

"It's not a lengthy tale. I heard rumors of a jabber using a firearm, went to investigate, and found him…standing on a pile of other jabbers. I later learned he killed them, for they were rival males. I offered him some food and, eagerly, he came to me, and I welcomed him. Ever since then, he's been an invaluable help, and displays intelligence I didn't expect in his kin." FL4K pat the jabber on the head as said monkey messily ate the remains of the severed hand. "Most jabbers, if given a pistol, will probably use it as a toothpick and shoot their jaw off. But Meat-Thief, apparently, recognized what it could do and used it as he saw fit. And, now, he's progressed into using a shotgun. At the rate he's at, I could one day give him a sniper rifle and teach him how to hunt as well."

"Please don't." Moze frowned. "A monkey with a sniper rifle sounds like a horror movie."

"It _is_ a horror movie." Zane corrected.

"…bullshit."

"It is! I got it on me shelf back on the ship, right next to me Skagnado collection."

"The fuck is—"

"Buncha skags in a tornado. Fuck it, when we're done here, we're havin' movie night." Zane finished his drink and tossed it over his shoulder. "But for now, we should get a move on 'fore I get desperate enough for a drink to try the moonshine here…"

"…FL4K, if I pay you to make him drink some toilet moonshine…" Moze asked the robot.

"Ya do that, Mozzy Moze, and I'll download sixteen terabytes of pornography into yer mech."

Why did he have that much porn? For good reason.

* * *

(Lil' short, non-canon chapter 'cause I don't feel like cranking out a big one today, while at the same time, I wanted to provide _something_. So, here's some insight on two characters and mild bits of backstory behind them. Of course, it's not canon…don't think moonshine can even be made in toilets.

Least I hope it can't.

Anyhow, reviews. Let's get to them.

-I'm glad my story's eased the pain of Borderlands 3's plot-line. It had SOME moments that were good, but largely, they missed many chances that I'm gonna try to take. They could easily salvage and redeem Ava in some of the DLCs, but I'm not really sure how. Her like ratio seems to be in the negatives. But anything's possible with the right writers.

-Zer0 is still with Rhys on Promethea. While yes, he could join the crew, he's still working for his friend, though I could have him vanish from time to time to help out. We'll see.

-Once I finish with this, I plan to move to other projects I had on the burner. I also plan to be uploading over on 's sister site, FictionPress, so if you're interested in reading some of the stuff over there, I can drop a link down below once I finish answering reviews. I will be touching on the DLCs for BL3, also, but they'll be separate stories.

Thanks for the continued support, and please support me over on FictionPress if you want. Anything helps, and I plan on making that account as popular as this one is, or at least I'll do what I can to. Until then, link's here: u/1140754/

Stay safe!)


	34. Navigating the Family Jewel Part 1

"Well, here we are…the Voracious Canopy." Zane parked the Technical and hoped out, resting his hands on his hips as he stared at the…well _gnarly _looking place.

Untamed wilds lay before them all. Overgrown trees, scrap metal from a crashed ship, and much more. The place somehow made the rest of Eden-6 look civilized; something the Operative almost felt dirty admitting, all things considered.

"It's…huh…" Moze scratched the side of her head. "I was expecting monsters everywhere, given the fucking daunting sounding name."

"Don't be silly, Moze," FL4K shook their head. "The monsters are deeper in the area. Few hang out around the outskirts aside from scavengers and opportunistic feeders."

"…then…what lies deeper, then?" Amara asked.

"_Large_ beasts. The sort that put the ones on Pandora to shame."

"I gotta see that shite to believe it, considerin' me brothers and I saw our fair share of beasties back in the da—"

"_Help! Someone give me a fuckin' hand!" _Zane tapped his earpiece as a staticky, distorted voice rang out. _"Ah, this shit sucks! Help! Help!" _

"The COV beat us here?" Moze inquired.

"Nah…that ain' them," Zane spun the barrel to his pistol and started moving. "Those fuckin' cultists would rather die than openly broadcast for help. And it ain' a trap, either. Trust me." He took point and led the group deeper into the untamed wilds.

"_Oh, wait wait wait—I'm pickin' up an ECHO signal. Hell yeah, I'm saved! Over here!" _It definitely wasn't the COV; they wouldn't openly broadcast they picked up a signal. Not even they were that idiotic.

"Who are you? And do you know where I can find the Family Jewel?" FL4K asked the speaker.

"_Oh, I know the Family Jewel. I'm BALEX, the ship's navigator! I'll prove it; here's coordinates for my ass, now come save it!" _

"Well, least that answers who this guy is." Zane shrugged and kept moving. He tensed up when he heard a few creatures moving; namely those weird, dinosaur beasts that spat fire or ran at the group. He didn't really know the names.

"_You're almost there, but…I'm kinda in the middle of somethin'. And that somethin's a big FUCKIN' DINOSAUR! HEADS UP!"_

"The fuck's that supposed to mean—WHOA!" Branches splintered and the ground shook as something ripped its way into the area. As far as Zane saw it…well it was a bigass dinosaur creature. WAY bigger than the creatures he saw back on Pandora, too.

"The fuck is that thing?!" Moze was already in her mech, open firing at the creature who charged for them, only to be steered away from a well-timed punch from Amara.

"A Tyrant," FL4K calmly answered, snapping their fingers and disappearing from sight. "One of the apex predators on Eden-6. Tend to eat just about anything they can fit in their mouth."

"They sound like skags, then." Zane dropped his clone and open fired at the big lizard, watching their bullets rapidly wear the fucker down. Thankfully, the thing soon fell dead, it's body disintegrating, courtesy of the fire rounds Zane used.

…and then he saw a weird, pink teddy bear, coated in bile.

"Oh, man, I'm OUT, man! Damn, it was nasty as hell in there. It STUNK." And the voice was coming from the bear. What the fuck. "Over here, in the ratty ass stuffed plushie; come pick me up." Moze was the first to do so, grimacing and handing the toy off to FL4K.

"…is this your…default physical state? If so, I do not judge…but I really want to."

"Hey, I don't—I don't wanna talk about it," The bear was dodgy about that. Had to be a stupid reason. "Why are you lookin' for the Family Jewel?"

"We're looking for a Vault Key Fragment," Amara spoke up, stepping closer so she could look over the weird plushie as well. "Wainwright said there was one on the ship…somewhere."

"Oh, you with Wainwright? Okay, all right. Yeah, yeah I'll show you where the Family Jewel is…it's in a gorge nearby, and I can get you inside."

"…why's it in a gorge?" Moze asked.

"Because 'don't drink and fly' girl, that's why. But yeah, it's down there. I'll get y'all in and y'all can get that Fragment."

"Glad yar helpin' us out, Balex," Zane did his best to get used to the whole weird bear thing. It was gonna take some time. "But…just like that yar helpin' us?"

"Sure, mostly 'cause if y'all was COV, y'all wouldn't say Wainwright. Y'all'd say Jakobs. And then I'd navigate y'all asses into a tyrant's den." Least he was honest about it. Zane appreciated that much. "So, let's get to work and get movin' 'fore another tyrant tries to eat me. I saw some shit in there I don't wanna talk about." Zane could agree there.

So, with their "new friend" they got moving again. Honestly, Zane was waiting for him to spill the beans on why he was a stuffed toy. He was sure it'd be a laugh.

That, or incredibly depressin'. Either or was on the table.

* * *

Moze was still having a hard time buying this…Balex was on their side. Considering their situation, trusting people was pretty fucking hard.

Yet, the others were going along with it…so…they had to.

The Gunner kept close to the others, looking ahead and seeing a…well a fucking derelict in the distance. An utterly ruined and destroyed ship that looked like it'd been there for decades at least. "Navigated, bitch," The stuffed toy called. "Welcome to the Family Jewel…or at least fuckin' part of it."

"_That's_ the Family Jewel?" Moze asked. "…looks like crap."

"Yeah, I had to make an emergency landing after a…disagreement between myself and my combat pilot, GenIVIV. Long story. Touchy one, too."

"So, a mutiny?" The Gunner looked over to the toy, tucked comfortably in FL4K's pocket.

"…y'know, that sounds better than a messy breakup, so we'll just leave it at that. The emergency hatch over there's held shut with hydraulic lines; cut those, and we're in."

"That's…odd, though." Amara chuckled. "Was your girlfriend another stuffed animal?"

"It's…it's a long story." He was still dodging the question. Moze was gonna let that slide for now, until she had a chance to make him spill the beans. But, for now, she stuck with Amara as they moved to find these lines and cut them…most likely with bullets.

"You trust this guy?" Moze whispered to the Siren. "He seems…dodgy. And also a stuffed animal."

"To be fair, we're friends with a murderous robot and their pets and an old, disgruntled mercenary…we trust a lot of weird people."

"Yeah but…something 'bout this doesn't sit right."

"Hey um…y'all know I can hear y'all."

Moze paled and turned to look at the teddy bear. "Sorry, it's just…it's weird."

"It's fine. Honestly, I sorta feel the same towards y'all. Vault Hunters, right?"

"We are, yes." Amara nodded.

"Neat; heard y'all kill just 'bout anything in your way, but rest assured, I ain't got nothin' to gain from stabbin' y'all in the back. Now that I got y'all, takin' back the Jewel's not gonna be no problem; GenIVIV may have the place locked down tight, but I know ALL the back routs. Pays to have a navigator on your side, huh?" He raised a fair point; enough of a point to ease Moze's suspicions. Balex knew where to go, and therefore knew how to get them to the Fragment, and all he wanted was control of the ship again, which was inevitably gonna happen regardless if they accomplished their goal.

So, Moze calmed herself down. This was a weird as fuck situation, but it was gonna work out.

…unless they ran into another tyrant. She didn't want one of those fuckers to try eating Iron Bear.

* * *

The interior of the Family Jewel was…well…shitty.

Amara looked around, keeping close to the others as the group ventured into the crashed ship. The smell was atrocious and foul; enough to make her stomach turn, and she'd smelt her fair share of rancid things long before she met up with the group.

Like that crime she helped solve back home…she didn't even know double homicide suicides were a thing but, sure enough, that was a sight to behold.

"So, beary Balex—"

"Do NOT call me that."

Zane rolled his eyes. "Fine, Balex. Where do we go from here?"

"We gotta go deep into the Family Jewel. I'll put us on the shortest route, and—"

"_BALEX, you little, cute idiot!" _A voice blared on the overhead speakers. _"Why are you here? Didn't I install you in a kids' toy and toss you out with the trash?" _Huh, so Balex wasn't a…weird possessed doll, but an AI. It made sense, and Amara felt glad she didn't share her idea with anyone.

"Cram it, GeneIVIV! I got friends now, and we're here for the Fragment! I know you got it in the security hold, too; don't play games, now!"

"_Oh, sorry. That's spoken for; Aurelia said if I brought it back to her, she'd buy me a dreadnaught. So…I'm gonna do that!"_

"How does she even plan to bring it?" Moze asked. "She's an AI too, right?"

"Doubt she thought that far ahead." Balex answered. "Either way, we're gonna get it first, and she can't stop us."

"_Uh huh, and what're you gonna do? Navigate me to death? Chart a course up your own ass, Balex. Pbbbbt." _She was remarkably childish. Made sense she was on the opposing team.

"She remains blissfully unaware an AI can simply be installed into a different, crappier system." FL4K noted. "I'll give her the same treatment I give the twins, but first, we need to move. Where shall we go, BALEX?"

"Through the medical bay!" The murderous robot was the first through the doors, with Amara following behind them, though the Siren quickly swung her fist to slap something out the air that shot at her, seeing it was a flailing, squirming ratch. "Damn…this place looks nasty."

"_Just a side effect of your loose navigating, BALEX," _The other AI continued to berate and insult Balex. _"You took us to a scummy port and didn't get checked! You gave me ratch!" _

"…y'know, I ain' even got a joke for this one." Zane murmured.

"Shut up, bitch; you shoved me in a teddy bear!"

"Can you calm down for a moment, Balex?" Amara blasted a ratch into disgusting smelling bits with her shotgun. "Before she does something drastic."

"Psh, the fuck can that ol' bitch do? Screw with my route—" The door ahead of them slammed shut.

"_Yes, yes I can."_

Amara just sighed. This was going to be a long mission, apparently.

* * *

FL4K drove their blade into another ratch, flinging the beast to the side for their pets to rip apart. They'd trekked a considerable distance into the derelict vessel. With BALEX's help, they saved a lot of time, but at the same time, lost it, considering the AI was content with bickering and scuffling with what they assumed to be his mate.

…it felt weird to give an AI a gender, considering they were a cluster of flies and memories. But, FL4K didn't judge. Despite wanting to, a tad.

Speaking of BALEX…the teddy bear floated past in the chassis of a medical bot. In order to bypass the security clearance locks, they had to shove him in one of the robot, namely because his "girlfriend" had locked him out the system. It was a tad concerning; if she had such control over the vessel, there was no telling what she could do.

"How are you enjoying your…new body, BALEX?" The Beastmaster asked the AI as the group came to a halt in another, small room, in front of a set of blastdoors meant to no doubt lead them out the medical bay. "Considerably better than being trapped as a stuffed animal, yes?"

"MUCH better, thanks. Sure, I ain' got missile launchers and shit, but I ain' a helpless lil' toy either, so it balances out."

"Good. On a note, it may be wise not to aggravate this GeneIVIV further."

"What? Why the fuck not? She deserves it."

"She does, but she could also easily, and I'm borrowing some words from Moze, 'fuck around and fill the room with gas or some bullshit'."

"…I'm mad how close that is to what I'd say."

"Nah, she seems to have control over the locking mechanism and other controls, but nothing like that. 'Sides, the Family Jewel didn't have any countermeasures like that, as far as I remember. Jakobs never had worries 'bout anyone tryin' to steal his ship."

"That's bold 'f him." Zane chuckled.

"Less bold and more he knew pirates and mercs knew better. You don't attack a man like Jakobs without a plan…or…bullshit Siren powers, apparently. I heard 'bout what the twins did to him. Fuckin' sucks."

"Sounds like you were close." FL4K noted.

"I wouldn't say close; more like I helped his ass get plenty of places, as per my programming, and he was a funny mothafucker to talk to. Had a lotta stories. Then the twins fucked that shit up, and then…well y'all saw me out in the mud."

"It's fine. The twin gods will fall, as will the rest of their cult. And then, when that's tended to, perhaps you could go into service for Wainwright. He may be needing a trustworthy AI for his own ship."

"Yeah, you gotta point. Y'all seem real cool; didn't expect that from Vault Hunters."

"We've had some time to get used to each other." Amara smirked. "And I tend to be pretty charismatic."

"I'd say it's a tossup 'tween you and I, Mara Mar."

The doors to the next area opened, and the team delved even deeper into the Family Jewel, though FL4K had a feeling something was amiss…something was wrong.

They loathed feelings like that, for they were rarely wrong.

* * *

(And it's time for some navigation. This one was spaced together a bit more, because I didn't really have time to watch an entire walkthrough for this one. Still getting back in the swing of my original protocols. I'm also trying to figure out what to submit over there on FictionPress, so that occupied some of my week.

But, for now, on to the reviews.

-So, apparently, I'm four parallel universes ahead of the devs with the whole "Zane doesn't like kids getting hurt" thing. I only added that because it felt like it's a line he wouldn't cross; letting kids get hurt in the crossfire and in the line of duty. But, glad to see it's official, I guess.

-The cast of BL3 does seem marginally more trained and experienced than the previous casts, though that could perhaps be pure coincidence. But it IS a neat little fact, so thank you, TRIVIALITY for pointing it out.

-The shotgun kicks thing is…I'll have to check the article out, though I tend to be very skeptical towards Kotaku given their history.

-I didn't know Moze made a saucy line towards Balex's position in the mech. Neat lil' fact.

Thanks for the continued support. Now that things are normal, I can write as well as I used to.)


	35. Navigating the Family Jewel Part 2

Zane kept himself ready as he and the others advanced deeper into the ruined ship. Sure, they had a guide leading them through the derelict, said guide was constantly fighting with his ex who, in turn, made shit more complicated for them as punishment.

Really, it was just annoying. But, alas and alack, he both knew how the lil' guy felt, and had been in his position once or twice in his younger years.

…even though he was being nice with once or twice; it was many more than that…

"BALEX, your designation intrigues me." The Operative was pulled from his thoughts when FL4K spoke to the teddy bear.

"Oh, yeah yeah yeah…stands for Binary Automated Logistical…" Somehow, the damn thing sighed. "All right, my old man Jakobs couldn't decide weather to call me Barry or Apex, so he ended up calling me BALEX. I know, it's not the coolest origin story but…"

"My five-hundred- and twelve-character alphanumerical designation has no meaning, but I have shortened it to FL4K for the sake of time." FL4K said curtly.

"My name means 'deathless' on thirty-seven worlds," Amara chimed in with a chuckle. "And it's also a brand of conditioner on eight. Should be getting royalties for those."

Zane shrugged. Might as well chime into the weird name thing, too. "Hey, could've been worse; me brothers were named Baron and Captain. I got off pretty lucky 'pared to them."

"And…augh…" Moze rolled her eyes. "My full name's Moserah Hayussinian Yan-Lun-al-Amir Andreyevna…Moze for short."

Zane stared at Moze like she told him she was an alcoholic. "Bull-fuckin'-SHITE; THAT'S your name?!"

"Y-Yeah, and?!"

"Nothin', always thought Moze was short for fuckin' Mozington or some shit. Or Mozzing. Not…_that_!"

"Says the fucker named Zane."

"I ain' mockin' the name; just sayin' thought it was somethin' else." Zane could still see Moze was fuming. She'd be fine. "I'mma still call ya Mozzy Moze. Ain' makin' no damn nicknames from _that_."

"Oh? Something you'll leave be for once, Zane?" Amara questioned.

"Nah…need time to come up with somethin' for what I just heard. Mossy? Hayu? See? I got nothin'." Honestly, he was just putting in the effort just to annoy Moze. Moment they left the ship he'd probably forget her real name. Was _way_ too long to remember every time.

It was why he was somewhat glad FL4K didn't actually say their full name, too. That'd probably put Moze's to shame in terms of fucking length.

* * *

Moze peppered another grog with her assault rifle, killing the damned lizard as her team swept through another abandoned room. They were still stuck providing cover for Balex and his…"new body" but she had the hunch they were getting closer to the end. Or, at the very least, somewhere they could afford to take a breath.

"We're coming up on the security hold; it'll be right around…ah crap, I'm navigating again," The robot groaned. "You know what, you find it? The room ain't far."

"…well that's helpful." Moze silently groaned.

"To be fair," Amara noted. "He's probably trying to avoid giving his 'ex' anymore fuel against him…seems like she's got quite a bit."

"You know an awful lot about dealing with ex-girlfriends, I guess." Moze tried to make a crack but…well once it was out there, she realized it was pretty fucking stupid and wished she could shoot the fucking words out the air.

Amara just chuckled. "I've had my fair share of girl troubles. Think one of my ex's literally tried to take a bank hostage to force me to go out with her again. Worked as good as it sounded."

"Least you c-came out of it alright." Moze picked her words carefully; that _feeling_ was back. It…still didn't feel bad, but it still felt weird to have. So, like before, she tried to stomach them and pressed on…even though part of her felt "relieved" Amara even went for girls to begin with.

…she was gonna talk to someone about these feelings when she had a chance. But, for now, mission. Can never forget the mission.

"Alright, there's the door to the security hold…aaaaaand GenIVIV's blocked it, and my medbot clearance probably won't get us through here."

"_Speaking of security," _Oh fuck. Balex's ex was back. _"Oh security~! There's an adorable little idiot criminal trying to break in. Please pull him apart. Slowly."_

"…y'know, she says she hates him, yet constantly refers to him as cute…" Moze grunted.

"Sometimes crazy ex's do that," Amara answered. "especially if they weren't the ones who instigated the break-up." Moze whirled around and emptied the remains of her mag into a robot, destroying it. She wanted to call Iron Bear but, with how deep they were in the ship, she was worried the signal could get messed with and the mech could get sent elsewhere; Balex's girlfriend probably couldn't do that but she wasn't taking the fucking risk.

It didn't take long to thin the herd of the attacking security bots until, at last, they stopped coming all together. "Alright, good fuckin' work, Vault Hunters…but we ain't getting through thar door. Luckily, I know a side route. Let's go through the freight entrance." At least with Balex they wouldn't get lost…because Moze was confident without him, they'd still be fucking around the entrance area.

Or, worse, still fighting fucking swamp dinosaurs.

* * *

Amara blew apart another security camera, racking her shotgun and taking another apart. They were pushing on at a swift pace and would inevitably reach their destination. Sure, she felt a lil' disappointed to only be fighting robots and swamp monsters, it was still…okay, compared to what they witnessed in the manor.

And the possibility the twins finally had an ace in the hole against them if they could readily produce more of those 'Anointed'.

The Siren pushed those concerned thoughts and lit up another robot, taking a moment to sigh and look around the ruined "battlefield". They were in another damaged room, one that looked to be where the original owners scanned stuff as far as she assumed. Made her wonder just what the Family Jewel was used for but, considering who owned it, she guessed it was used to move weapons shipments.

A neat thought.

"The key fragment should be in this security cell," She turned to look at Balex, who was typing away at and trying to 'hack' a console. "Watch my ass while I 'navigate' the door controls." Least this meant things were just about over—

"_I've had a lot of free time since you crashed us here, BALEX," _Aaaaaaand there goes that thought. _"Did you know the local jabbers have a unique language JUST for mating? They're quite the romantics." _

"I…don' like where this is goin'." Zane said, already dropping his clone down.

"I get it, I'm no good at dirty talk; shut up about it." Balex called back, still hard at work.

"_You wanna hear some? It's really beautiful." _

"Hear…monkey mating calls…the fuck's she on about?" Moze asked.

FL4K loaded their sniper. "Moze, reload. Now. We're about to have company."

"What—"

And then the fucking AI started making jabber noises. Annoying, creepy jabber noises. Amara quickly realized what the fucking thing's intent was when she heard many distant, reciprocating calls.

"Ah, crap! She's calling ALL the horny jabbers back to us! I hate those things!" Amara started firing the mere instant one came into view, blowing the jabber to bits.

"FL4K! Is your own jabber gonna be an issue—" She watched said trained jabber club another across the head with a pipe. "…huh."

"Bold of you to assume Meat-Thief doesn't know better, Amara." She sighed and blew apart another horny jabber.

This was NOT how Amara envisioned her day to go; fighting waves of sex-hungry jabbers, but…well that's how her day was.

On the upside, they avoided actually letting any of the fuckers close. The Siren didn't even wanna think about what'd happen if someone got overwhelmed.

The team kept shooting and Balex even got some turrets online to bolster their chances in fighting off the wave of horny apes. Thankfully, after a lot of bullets were spent, the remaining jabbers pissed off, finally giving them the solace they needed. "That was…really uncomfortable," Balex said. "Come back, I've nearly got the cell open." With the way cleared, Amara let Balex take the lead as he opened up a door—

_**WHUMP!**_

Just in time to get whacked by a damned jabber. A BIG one, too.

"_Hahaha! Idiots! Did you really think I didn't have a backup plan?!"_

"Your methods make me assume as much," FL4K coldly retorted. "Feels like all of this was improvised and you're trying to maintain the illusion of control."

"_It's not, you damn drone."_

"Mhm; least I can actually walk." FL4K went after anyone they could. But, still, Balex's body was gone and the Badass Jabber was, quickly, dealt with by the others as the Siren stooped down to pick the pink toy up.

"Well, what now, Balex?" She asked.

"Fuck…we just keep going, I guess. It's not in—"

"_I moved the key fragment ages ago, you cute dummy. If you want it, come to the bridge and fight me for it." _

"Sort of impossible; we actually have bodies. You don't."

"_Oh, you'll see." _Amara didn't like the sound of that. But, still, only path now was up.

To the bridge to confront this crazed AI that, somehow, made FL4K seem normal.

* * *

FL4K kept their SMG at the ready as the team continued to move. They were nearing the bridge, where Balex's mate wanted a showdown, and a showdown was what the Beastmaster planned to give and then some.

"Okay, listen, I got an idea on how to beat GenIVIV."

"Why? Is she not simply an AI?" FL4K asked.

"Nah, bitch probably installed herself into that old Maliwan Mech Jakobs kept around as 'décor'…despite it bein' fully functional, but there's a second one in the shuttle bay. If we can get me into that one, GenIVIV won't be able to stop us! Let's head through Engineering." A detour, but FL4K could tolerate it, and the team pressed on, moving swiftly and cleaving through any foes who were foolish enough to stand in their way.

Once in Engineering, FL4K saw the mech in question. It reminded them much of Moze's Iron Bear, but…rudimentary. And Maliwan based, of course.

"So, what now, Balex?" Moze asked.

"Mech time, baby; we gotta open it up and install me inside that beautiful thing. Should be a manual override on top." Zane was already moving, moving past the sparse robots in the room and easily reaching the mech, setting to work in overriding it as FL4K rammed their blade into another service bot, ripping it in two. It didn't take long to get the mech groundside and, once there, Amara was the one to install Balex into it…with mixed results.

Namely, she placed him where the mech's groin would go, if it had one.

"…Mara…what's um…what's with the placement?" Zane asked with a snicker. "Like, I ain' questionin' it but—"

"He said shove him wherever. Can't reach the head." She retorted.

"So…he's just gon' free-bear it?" Zane joked. FL4K audibly sighed.

"Yeah it looks weird, but check it," The mech's arms moved, displaying impressive firearms. "Weapon systems are online! Now lemme…just figure out sh—" The jets activated and the mech started to ascend. "Wait fuck nonononono—OOOH SHIT!" And he was gone; ascended right out the windows above.

"…I assume this was not part of the plan?" FL4K asked.

"_Yeah just…head to the bridge; door should be open. I'll…try to stop careening through the air." _Least they had a straight shot. So, now came the time to finish the fight, and destroy GenIVIV.

…her name still made no sense. That wasn't even how numerals worked…

* * *

[Another chapter done and the closer we draw to the conclusion of this epic tale. We're still quite far off, but eh, we're having fun.

Thanks for the continued support on this, but like always, time to cover some reviews.

-I made sure to include the scene of everyone describing their full name and, of course, having Zane react to Moze's. Let's face it, it's something he'd do.

-Them facing off against horny jabbers is something I forgot. Glad I recalled, as it led to some neat comedy.

Don't forget to also check out my FictionPress; I plan to update there more in time. Til then, stay safe, and stay healthy!]


	36. Navigating the Family Jewel Part 3

The bridge was a bitch to get to, but Zane was glad they made it.

Standing at the doors with the others, the Operative loaded another mag into his SMG and let a sigh of relief escape him. "So, we doin' this? Cause there's a crazy ass AI on the other side of these doors, and she ain' plannin' to go down easy."

"We've killed worse," Moze rolled her eyes. "Gettin' cold feet, old man?"

"Far from it; jus' makin' sure we don' get creamed. Shite's gettin' tougher, if ya hadn' noticed."

"He raises a valid point," FL4K commented. "Stay together, stay strong. We cannot choke this close to the end." The doors parted and they stepped inside…to find nothing.

Nothing except a ruined bridge, and a Maliwan death mech encased in an energy dome.

"_What? Surprised there's no trap?" _The loony AI's voice blared again. _"Honestly, I wanted to leave one, but I'm good here; you can't get past this shield, nor will you get the fragment. So…bye-bye; don't let the door hit you on the way out!" _

Zane scowled and mashed his ECHO device. "Balex, ya got almost here? Yar ex's don' locked herself in a dome or some shite."

"_Almost; just fixing a problem!"_

"_Psh, you're not designed to solve problems, BALEX. That's MY job; you're just my chauffer…a shitty one, need I remind you?" _

"_Well, here's a problem solved, then; I'm turning off the anti-collision safeguards. NAVIGATED, BITCHES!" _Zane watched just in time for something to slam into the dome protecting GenIVIV, sending her mech to the ground.

The Operative was pleasantly surprised to see Balex standing there in his smaller mech, ready to go. "Alright! Let's do this, Vault Hunters!"

"Agreed." Amara punched the ground and sent a wave of energy at GenIVIV as everyone else lit her up. For the most part, Balex met her punch for punch, keeping her occupied and stopping her from—

_**BLAM!**_

The stuffed animal hitting the ground told Zane Balex's mech was blown to bits. _"Heh, so much for your mech, you cute idiot." _Without hesitation, GenIVIV kicked the teddy bear across the room, said stuffed animal being caught by Amara.

"Damnit! She broke my mech! Y'all finish her off!"

"Gladly." Moze called down Iron Bear and enthusiastically lit the mech up, riddling GenIVIV with shots as Zane switched to a corrosive pistol, putting a few shots in the mech's legs to send it tumbling to the ground, in a prime position for Amara to slam down on with her fists, obliterating the mech in an explosion of fire and metal.

"Goodbye, GenIVIV," Balex called from Amara's side. "You sucked and I hated you. End of story." Quite a sendoff. Zane tucked his gun away and looked down to the ground, bemused to see the fragment was…well right there.

"The skank was keepin' it inside her? Damn…didn' know she was that freaky."

"She's all sorts've freaky, man." Balex called. "But she's dead…so…now what?"

"Well, you're welcome to tag along with us," Amara was already heading for the door. "Wouldn't really be right to just leave you here, would it?"

"Yeah, good point. Shame I couldn't keep that badass mech."

"Eh, I'm sure Ellie can rig something up for you." Moze chimed in.

"True, she could perhaps find another chassis like mine. Then you can strangle someone with your bare hands." FL4K added disturbingly.

Zane just…went ahead and called Axton while they talked and walked. One fragment down, and a few more to go. They were making good progress, and the twins knew jack shite, so they were a step ahead for once.

He hoped that'd last.

* * *

Moze was the first off the drop-ship, yawning and stretching. She felt absolutely _ecstatic_ to be off that damned swamp planet, even if it'd only be for a little bit. Plus, she could restock her ammo, too, and even upgrade Iron Bear; see about finally installing that railgun she always wanted.

"_You have the fragment, yes? Go ahead and bring it to the lab," _Tannis said through her ECHO…even though Moze loathed hearing the crazy bitch's voice. _"Lilith and I are devising ways to combat the Calypsos and—" _Shrill, echoing laughter made Moze clutch the sides of her head and double over…also it wasn't helpful that the ship was fucking _shaking_!

"_Ah no, I know that evil laugh anyhwhere," _Balex shouted. _"GenIVIV's all up in your ship!"_

"How the fuck did she get in here?!" Zane shouted.

"_Hey, cutie idiots! Nice ship; not as well armed as the Family Jewel, but think I'll fit right in once I make some modifications. Oh, on-board service bots? Dismember people for me." _

"We need to move." FL4K was already running up the stairs, Moze following suit. It didn't take long to reach the common area of the ship, where several service bots were moments away from murdering a group of scared passengers. Said bots were blown to bits in a flash, courtesy of Amara's shotgun.

"_What the hell? Vault Hunters, see if you can get to the bridge and fix this; I'm locked in the lab with Tannis and Maya." _Explained were Lilith was. More bots made themselves known and the team continued to take them apart, Moze making sure to double tap each one…last thing she wanted was one acting like it was destroyed, then springing up to cheap shot one of them.

It didn't take long to reach the bridge, where more bots awaited them. Said bots were dispatched swiftly, though Moze swore and stumbled back when the entire ship inverted itself.

"What the FUCK is she doing?!" The Gunner called out.

"_Oh, it's simple; I'm going to fly you, the key fragment, and your whole ship to Aurelia! And once she rewards me with a dreadnaught, I'll travel from system to system, burning every inhabited planet I find!"_

"…Balex, why's your ex goin' full genocidal now?" Zane asked.

"She's lost it…not that she had it to begin with."

"You two may wish to look ahead," FL4K gestured behind them, showing that the ship was moving. _Fast_. "She plans to make good on her threat."

"Fuck…I got an idea," Balex said. "She's got her grubby claws in your computer system, and y'all can't hurt her from here, but I can. Upload me into your dashboard!" Amara was already heading for the console just as the ship exited hyperspace…and for Moze to swear and jump back when an asteroid smashed against the window.

She took them to an asteroid field…did she plan to kill them all before she got to the ice bitch?

"Alright, GenIVIV," The stuffed animal was in the control console, meaning Balex was in there with GenIVIV, confronting her directly. "Get. The hell. OUT!"

"_Make me." _The sounds of them audibly fighting rang out through the speakers. Sounded like the fucker was giving her all he had and then some.

"Y'know, I'm wonderin' how two AI can fight," Zane commented. "But then again, I think us bein' in a fuckin' asteroid field takes priority."

"Agreed."

The crazy AI cried out a second later and a _plink _sound caught Moze's attention. "Hah! I shoved her ass in a hard drive and ejected the bitch; go ahead and flush it into space if you want, Vault Hunter." Moze was the one to do so, picking up the hard drive with heavy caution—

"_SCREW YOU! I'LL KILL YOU ALL!" _She still had access to ECHOs, apparently.

"Sucks to suck, GenIVIV. I'm turning off the lockdowns, everyone, and gettin' your ship back to Eden-6. Thank me later." The asteroid filled space disappeared as the ship was plunged into another hyperspace jump. Things were looking up; at least for now.

"_Vault Hunter, I may have a use for that combat AI. Bring her by." _Moze was surprised to hear Marcus call her through her ECHO, but she brushed it off, for now.

"Well, we almost died…I'ma get a drink." Zane turned to leave. "Moze, pass me that hard drive. I'll deliver the damn AI to Marcus. See if he wants to shove her in a toilet or something."

"Fine." She tossed him the drive as he left, giving Moze the respite she wanted at last as the Gunner slumped down in a seat. That was a hectic moment, but thankfully, it was resolved…at the cost of their service bots; they'd have to replace those at some point.

…thoughts for later. For now, she was gonna have her fucking rest. She _earned_ it.

* * *

[Another shorter one, mostly 'cause I plan to get into plot heavy details next chapter. So, this gives me time to organize things accordingly.

Now, for reviews…I'll answer one I forgot to last time.

-I do plan to bring back the other Vault Hunters, though it'd mean I'd have to be VERY meticulous in how I do it, considering the devs are releasing DLCs.

-I'm aware Lilith doesn't Phaseshift; that chapter was written prior to that knowledge, and I can't go back and edit it 'cause that feels silly.

Leave plenty of reviews; I enjoy reading and answering them as best I can. Until then, stay safe, and thanks for reading!]


	37. Nighttime Chat

The sharp taste of alcohol brought Zane comfort, relief, even. The Operative sat at Moxie's bar, holding a recently opened bottle in hand, and unwinding in his own way. The lights were dimmed, and the place barely occupied, reminding him again it was late, and many of Sanctuary's populace was asleep. Sure, he could also be asleep, but then he wouldn't be drinking, would he?

He took another swig of his drink and breathed a heavy sigh. The last while was…hectic, to say the least. Crazy AI, super soldiers; he thought he'd see that sorta shite years ago, not when he retired. But, when dealing with the COV, there was a lot that could happen.

"Yo, Mox know you're here?" He glanced over his shoulder to Axton. The Commando held a cup of what he guessed was cocoa or something and was in his sleeping clothes, a tank top and a pair of shorts.

"Nah. I'll leave some change for her, in case she gets irked." Zane took another drink. "The fuck ya doin' up?"

"Bedtime routine." Made sense. "So, things're getting harder down there, aren't they? Reminds me of the odds my friends and I had to go through back on Pandora."

"Yeah…been up 'gainst tough fights 'fore, but nothin' like this. The COV ain' tough, no, but the sure as hell're plentiful or somethin' or another." The Operative finished his beer and set it to the side. "It's weird; can't even get a full read on these twins."

"What's there to read? They're assholes with a livestream and an army of followers."

"I mean what they want from us; me mates 'n I. The guy y'all went up against, Jack, was pretty clear with his intent, right?"

"Yep," Axton took a seat on one of the stools, sipping his drink again. "Wanted us dead, dead, and more dead, as slowly as possible. Honestly, he had a lotta chances to kill us, but he was cocky. By the time he was _seriously_ gunning for us, we were already too close to killing him."

"Right, he was straightforward. But these twins? Not a fuckin' clue. The bitch, Tyreen, seems intent on convertin' us or some shite, and her brother wants us dead. Who knows; that might be why they haven' just killed us, yet. One wants us on their side, the other wants us dead."

"Hmm…despite being a bitch, Tyreen's got a good plan, there."

"Oh?"

"You're Vault Hunters; if you want something, you'll get it, and I think she knows that. She'd rather have you guys with her, and not against her."

"Fair. Honestly, if they caught me long 'fore I joined Lil's outfit, they _might_'ve convinced me to help 'em, considering I used to be a mercenary. But…well, they sank that boat when they made this shite personal. This ain' bout money now; hasn' been for a while."

"Amen to that; that's how I felt after Jack killed Roland. It's funny, I ain't even mad about the train thing. I'm pissed about _that_. We were just about to win; about to fix Pandora…then he springs up and throws it all to hell. Only reason we survived was because Lil, before Jack got full control over her, teleported us all away."

"Let's hope we don' have a moment like that. Might not get as lucky."

"Then you all—ngh—should be careful, then." Zane glanced over his shoulder. Maya was in the doorway, resting against the frame and, clearly, straining herself to move. "Axton, lil' help?"

"Sure sure." The Commando got up and helped the de-powered Siren to one of the stools, letting her sit before he returned to his own seat. "Weren't you told to stay in bed, Maya?"

"I've slept for the last twelve hours; I need a break."

Zane tossed his beer in the trash and picked up a fresh one. "Well, let's talk away, then. I'm sure Lil' won't mind if I sleep in." Besides, he was interested to hear from the depowered Siren.

Who knows? Maybe she had some tips or something.

* * *

[Short and non-canon. Risky, but eh. Now that a fragment's been found, I'm considering doing some non-canon entries, both with the team handling side-quests or just unwinding from the situation. Things get much harder for the team, sure, but for now, they have some time to unwind and rest, which is fair.

I've also been working on some professional projects and have neared completion with them, so those've occupied the bulk of my attention.

Next chapter'll be another non-canon one, but it'll be much bigger and much better. I can assure you all that.]


	38. An Update

So, as many of you can tell, I'm uploading way earlier than usual…and that there's no chapter. The reason for this is, due to RL complications, I'm behind in my professional work, and thus I need to commit today towards that, but that means no chapter. Instead of leaving you all in the dark and being cruel, I feel a better idea is to let you all know, and maybe clarify some stuff people've asked before. I've done this before, so I'm trying to not make these sorts of chapters a habit, as it'll make me seem unreliable as an author.

My plan to involve all the original Vault Hunters from BL2 may be hard since the DLCs are introducing many of them back. Best I can do is have the DLCs be set a while after the main story so, when they meet that corresponding character, it's still memorable.

I'm "sorta" planning to have a MozexAmara situation, but the tricky part is writing it in a way that makes it believable. Romance has never been a forte of mine, so including it in a natural way can be tricky. But, like with all things, I'll give an attempt.

I'm honestly glad this story's helped people out in dealing with the game's main story; wasn't expecting that at all. As I said in the past, I only started this as a thing to do while bored, and it exploded into my most popular story, so thanks for the support, everyone!

Next week I'll have a non-canon chapter out; give the team more downtime before, like last time, we get into some harsher elements of the story. Calm before the storm and whatnot.

Thanks for reading this blurb, and I hope I haven't irked anyone by not having a chapter today.


	39. Downtime

Zane sprawled out in his recliner, a bottle in hand and a smile on his face. The door to his room was locked tight and the Operative reclined in only a tee shirt and boxers, relaxed as could be and with the TV on in front of him. Lilith said they could take the day to themselves and, naturally, he was taking _full_ advantage of it, and what better way to unwind than by relaxing in boxers and watching shitty sci-fi films.

The one on now was a fun one; _Attack of the 50 foot Skag_; looking back on it, Zane found it funny, as a kid, he couldn't tell what was special effects and what wasn't but, now…well he could clearly see it was just two dudes in a suit, and with the camera tilted to always make it look like the skag was bigger than the actors.

He wasn't even sure why they did that; he was sure skags that size were actually a thing, now.

Another swig from his drink was taken and Zane breathed a sigh. It'd been a rough few days, and despite how well he held up…well honestly, it was definitely an armful and a half. It was even worse with New-U stations being dismantled and downed; a fuck-up was lethal, as opposed to a temporary setback. Sure, he didn't really have many years left, but he wanted to spend them _not_ being murdered by crazy cultists who'd probably try and broadcast his death across the galaxy.

His situation was a harsh one, but he was already this deep in the hole. No sense in trying to claw his way out now. Not when they were this close to actually fucking things up for the COV.

…or at least he thought. Really, still, he saw a lot of holes in Lilith's plan. Honestly, he was hoping the twins would fuck up enough and reveal their headquarters so they could lead an assault on them. Fucking up the Vaults didn't really do much except...well buy time for that shite. So, hopefully, that was what the Commander's plan was.

Zane took another swig of his drink and reclined. He let those thoughts drift away; right now it was time to unwind. Unwind and pop in another tape.

He was sure he had a copy of _Revenge of Mothrakk_ somewhere.

* * *

Moze made sure her goggles were in place as she welded another plate to Iron Bear. The downtime was appreciated, 'cause now she could fix Iron Bear and…well just that. She didn't really know what else to do with the time she was given. Granted, she had hobbies, yeah, but priorities.

She set the welding tool down and tugged the goggles up. Her mech was fully repaired and, now, she even managed to swap the left arm for a rocket launcher; she could murder four times as many cultists in a fourth of the time!

…still, now with the repairs done…Moze didn't know what to do next. Drink? Browse the net? Socialize?

She shot down all of those ideas…which left one. She could talk to Amara. However, with such an idea, came an influx of those…thoughts. Thoughts she didn't understand. They weren't bad, no, just intrusive, and she didn't know how to act on them. Should she just go right up to Amara and tell her about them? No! She'd think differently!

"Ugh!" Moze shook her head. She had to figure out what the fuck was going on in her head, but for now, she could probably give Ellie back her tools.

And, maybe, she could ask FL4K about these…thoughts. The bot seemed to know more than they let on. Could potentially even help figure out their source.

* * *

Amara rested her fingers on the keyboard, a sigh leaving her. She thought it'd be easy to send an email to her family back home, letting them know about her adventures as a Vault Hunter and the things she did. Problem was she didn't really know where to begin. Writing was never a forte of hers, nor was she good at sitting down and composing her thoughts…such a thing was why she was more of 'punch first ask questions eventually'.

Still, she had to write something, so the Siren did her best to think. Eventually, she had something, and began to write.

_It's been a weird few days, but…well things are alright, I guess. We stomped Maliwan's strike team and a buncha other things. Hell, I got to open a Vault, too! Of course, that turned out to be a mistake, but the next one should be better. _

_I've made a lot of friends along the way; one of them's a bit…well she's nice. Moze is her name. Things've gotten weird between us; not weird bad but weird…weird. She gets flustered around me. I think I know what it is, but I'd rather wait for her to tell me herself what it is…last thing I wanna do is jump to conclusions. _

_I'll try to send another email later. For now, stay safe!_

Amara's finger lingered over the enter key. Her eyes were glued to the paragraph she wrote about her and Moze, lips curling into a scowl. She was tempted to just edit it out, but…she didn't see a reason at the same time. It was the truth, and besides, it could possibly help. Maybe.

Her finger mashed down on enter and the email was sent. Her cautious scowl was replaced by a relaxed grin.

Now to see if she could borrow some of Zane's horror films. She needed something else to do.

* * *

"There you are my friends. More food." FL4K relaxed as they watched their beasts gorge themselves on food. Mr. Chew snapped up his kibble eagerly, Broodless took time to savor her meal, and Meat-Thief was messily eating his food. The downtime was appreciated, though mostly so FL4K could properly feed their beasts. They didn't really have any interests outside of hunting, killing, and other things, so the time away from the hunt could only be spent on aiding their pets and ensuring they were all perfectly fed and ready for the hunt, for next they went after the next fragment, wherever it was.

Once more, their gaze was out towards the window. Towards space. They wondered where their hunt would take them next. Where they would go once this was over. Of course, they'd stick with the other Vault Hunters but what came next? What foe would arise to be hunted next?

They didn't know, and in a sense, they enjoyed that. Not knowing what came next was always a delight, for if they always knew what was to come next, their existence would get boring, and they would exist for a _long_ time.

Or as long as they could, considering the nature of their existence, and how accidental it was.

…their existence was a mystery to them. FL4K always found themselves questioning it in their downtime. How they gained sentience. Then again, they figured that's how it is for everyone; they were no different. Amusingly, it was why they didn't enjoy downtime; being alone with their thoughts always led them into wondering just _why_ they exist, and how long they'll exist for.

Perhaps they would one day learn the secret to the why behind their existence. But, for now, FL4K reached down to gently stroke the side of Mr. Chew's head, hearing the skag growl in delight.

This was fine. Living in the 'now' had its benefits.

* * *

[So, downtime chapter. Feels weird going off canon, but it's needed. I got my stuff balanced, somewhat, so I can do bigger chapters in the coming weeks. I did have to cancel the whole Fictionpress thing due to low readership for my works there, so I moved back to Wattpad, where I can potentially market some of my original works and earn income towards them. Won't discuss more about it 'til I have content going.

So, reviews.

-I didn't add Zer0's PoV for…well a number of reasons. One being he's still on Promethea with Rhys, though I could give a chapter with him working on rebuilding the city or something. I dunno. The other reason's because I literally have no idea how Zer0 thinks. Considering he speaks in Haikus it's possible he thinks in them too, and…well that's a lot of haiku to write and for the audience to digest.

-I'll see what I can do for the AmaraxMoze thing later down the road. I have a few plans.

-I'm glad, once again, this story's been able to fill the void the original game left. Really, yeah, the twins were weak antagonists; motives are "there" but as I said before, they made the tragic error of being villains after the performance of Handsome Jack. It'd be hard to top the charm he had, so they were set to fail from the beginning. The only consolation they bring is they're antagonists you really love to hate, but that's it.

-I...don't actually know what Shadow Warrior is, but I could google it later before bed.

Keep the reviews coming. Next week we'll get back into the Eden-6 chaos. Until then, be safe out there; world's gotten crazier and hazardous.]


	40. Venturing into the Cellars

Zane stifled a yawn. The Operative had just woken up and, with his respite done, it was back to work and back to finding the fragments. Sure, he wanted to catch up on some more old shows, but he appreciated the time he had, and thus it was back to business as usual.

"So, Commander," He began. "what's on the agenda today? Any word where we're goin'?"

"Wainwright contacted me a moment ago," Lilith said, sipping what he guessed was some coffee. "him and Hammerlock made strides in finding the next fragment, but like with everything, it comes with some bad news."

"Shite…well, lay it on me."

"He said it's in the Jakobs powder cellar, where they get their 'specialized' gunpowder for their guns." Lilith took another sip. "Which is kinda weird. They 'age' gunpowder down there…in casks."

"Probably makes 'em lot more potent and refined, like agin' a fine whiskey. The fragment's down there?"

"Yep. According to Wainwright, his father must've hid the fragment in a barrel of 'Grand Reserve' gunpowder before the twins showed up, and his contact knows a way in. Unfortunately, time for the bad news."

"Ugh, is it always bad news when I show up?" Moze asked. Her and the others stepped into the room, though for once, FL4K's beasts were gone…probably tearing shite up elsewhere in the ship.

"Not always," The former Siren chuckled. "but, regardless, this'll be a two-pronged assault. You four'll infiltrate the cellar, while Wainwright and Hammerlock slip past his sister's guards. Seems he's dead-set on taking back Jakobs."

"Bout time," Amara scoffed. "With them kicked off Eden-6, the COV'll have one less advantage over us, not that they have very many to begin with. So, let's get moving." The group filed out and Zane left last, though he came to a stop when he felt his ECHO device ring.

"Hello?"

_"Vault Hunter, has Commander Lilith informed you about what Wainwright and I discovered?" _Hammerlock asked.

"She did, yeah. We're headin' planetside now to get to that cellar.

_"I see…that inevitably means we'll run into conflict with my sister." _He sounded disheartened. _"Zane, correct? You had family yourself on Pandora, right?"_

"A few brothers. We hated each other, or, rather, they hated me."

_"I see…well, plain and simple, I cannot excuse Aurelia for what she's done to Wainwright and the people of Eden-6. She must answer for her lengthy list of crimes but, in the end, she IS still my sister…so, if I could speak to her, face-to-face, please allow me the chance. I could perhaps convince her to surrender peacefully." _Zane didn't respond. The way Hammerlock said that told him he was unsure a plan like that would even work, and honestly, it wouldn't. From the way his bitch of a sister composed and conducted herself she was bound to try and use such a chance to try and kill Hammerlock but, at the same time, Zane understood why he wanted to try.

Family was always hard to let go, even when one knows they couldn't be saved.

"I'll let you have a chance, Hammerlock," Zane began. "but if she tries to shoot ya…well we both know what I'll have to do, friend. Ya're a mate of a mate, and I can't let ya get hurt if she pulls a fast one."

_"Thank you for that. Hopefully, I can convince her." _The call ended and Zane kept walking, now with a frown.

Hammerlock sounded anything but sure.

* * *

"Bout time, Vault Hunters," Moze was the first off the dropship, landing with a thud and shouldering her rifle instinctively. They arrived at the entrance to the…well she wanted to say cellar and, as said, Clay was standing nearby, ready and waiting. "also, fancy way of touching down, too."

"Eh, it's alright." The others dropped down near Moze, though, for once, FL4K didn't have their beasts with them…weird. "So, you're showing us the way?"

"Sure am. Follow me." Moze stuck close to the rogue, delving deep into the musty, dark crawlspace of an entryway. "It's funny, Wainwright's father showed me this entryway a long time ago, back during my smuggling days. He was a great man, and I owe it to him to see the Jakobs corporation gets back into Jakobs hands. Besides, Wainwright'll make a damn fine leader…provided we survive this shit."

"I'm sure we'll be fine." Amara retorted. The group, for the most part, stuck together until they reached a large set of metal doors. "Well, here it is; this'll put you right under the estate, so be sure to stay safe, and stay smooth, operator."

"Nice." Amara caught the joke. Moze didn't see what it was. Still, the team delved into the passageway…and Moze realized something. Something both cathartic, yet harrowing.

Zane was awfully quiet.

"The fuck's wrong with you, old man?" Moze growled.

"What? I ain' 'llowed to be quiet for a bit."

"No, because when you are, something's off. _Very_ off."

He sighed. "Hammerlock contacted me 'fore we got here. Wants to try talkin' with his crazy ass sister first."

"…that's going to get him shot." FL4K curtly said. "Shot and much worse. She's beyond saving."

"Yeah but, grr." The old man shook his head. "I know where he's comin' from. He thinks there's still good in his sister, jus' like me 'n my brothers. Of course, with them, only good in 'em was bein' good at leadin' shite." Moze frowned at that. She didn't expect him to be…sentimental, for once.

"Ugh…we'll give him a chance." Moze said. "And, if she screws her chance, we're taking her out."

And, with that, they pressed on towards the estate's cellars.

* * *

"Alistair, are you alright?" Hammerlock looked over to Wainwright, the two of them boarding the technical to head over to the estate and join the Vault Hunters in their search. Due to Wainwright's plan, they'd divide the COV's forces and, potentially, better their chances.

…that, and he wanted to use said chance to, hopefully, reason with Aurelia.

"I'm fine," He finally answered. "Just…worried over what's to come. Over the inevitable."

"Your confrontation with Aurelia?" He nodded. "Don't worry 'bout it, I'll be there with you, like I am now."

"I know, and I can't thank you enough for that…but despite how much I want this to happen, there's a good chance she'll simply try and kill me. It's how she was ever since we were kids." Hammerlock sighed. "I never understood why. She had everything as a child yet grew into such a miserable person."

"Miserable? She's damn near a trillionaire." Wainwright huffed.

"True, but there are some things money cannot buy. _True_ happiness is one. It's why I pity her; she tries to surround herself with things that'll make her happy, yet I know, deep down, she aches, and yearns for something better."

"And you think we can fix that?"

"We have to try. What kind of brother would I be if I didn't give an attempt?" Hammerlock settled in his seat and Wainwright in his. "…Wainwright…if things do indeed go bad, like I fear, promise me—"

"I won't letcha get hurt, Alistair."

Hammerlock shook his head. "Not that…promise me you'll grant her a swift, merciful death. After everything she's done, she doesn't deserve to suffer a long, painful death. No one except the twins deserve such a fate."

And, with that, they drove off.

* * *

[Lil non-canon thing in the end, wanted to show how much this impacts Hammerlock because, as someone with siblings myself, it'd truly hurt me if one of them turned on me. Thankfully, the odds of such a thing are dismal, but again, I know where he comes from.

I also made this one short because I want to dedicate the entire next chapter towards the cellar and the team's journey through it. It'd really help.

But, with that, we're on to reviews.

-Shadow Warrior sounds a lot like DOOM, but differently composed. Not saying that's a bad thing, but it just gives me those vibes.

-Downtime's always fun; it gives writers a chance to explore what a character does in their off-time and, through it, expand more on who they are.

-I've done what I could to clean up the plot of Borderlands 3 as best I could. It's FAR from easy, but at the same time, it's a rewarding enough experience as it is to, finally, see one of my stories on this site garner so much love and unite so many. Perhaps when I get professional content out there I can see the same turnout, but only time will tell. I will need to check out the dialogue for the Bloody Harvest event and see if I can do a spin-off for it down the line; I've already covered I plan to incorporate the DLCs and, with them, give my own shine.

Til next time. Leave as many reviews as you want and ask as many questions as you desire. I'll answer them all in due time. Stay safe!]


	41. A Fragmented Family

Zane was a bit amused by the path he and the others took. Given the Jakobs' methods, he expected the "secret passage" to the powder cellar to be something elaborate and fancy…not a literal fucking cave. But, alas and alack, it was, and the Operative came to a stop with the others in a wider junction with, ahead, the entrance to the cellar itself.

_"That passage should put y'all smack dab in the powder cellar," _Wainwright chirped, excitedly. _"and that means the barrel delivery pipe ain't far. Get movin' and watch for stray shots."_

"Stray shots?" Amara asked. "Wait, these can all explode?"

"Gunpowder tends to…y'know, combust, when ignited, Mary Mar," Zane gingerly loaded his SMG, making sure it was a Dahl based one to ensure every shot hit its mark. "and then that combustion leads to explosions…lotta 'em. Plus there's a good chance of said explosions trappin' us in these cellars."

"And then there rests the chance of you all running out of oxygen." FL4K noted. "Do not run out of oxygen. I've heard it's a horrible way to die."

"Heard it from where?" Moze grunted.

"A bandit I was strangling. The way he struggled and flailed told me running out of oxygen's a painless, but horrifying process, as if one's brain simply turns off."

"…mind…not sharin' shite like that with the group, FL4K?" Zane remembered well the robot was obsessed with murdering and killing whatever crossed their path but…well that was still a bit dark to hear, even for him. "Anyways, let's get movin'. Sooner we run through here, sooner we can stick it to those fuckin' twins." The team proceeded down the cobblestone-lined hallway and, upon rounding a bend, were greeted with an assortment of COV fuckers, walking about.

"…oh right, forgot they're crawlin' everywhere." Zane muttered.

"Then shoot them already, old man." Moze shouldered her rifle and, without hesitation, planted a shot square in the side of a cultist's head, sending her to the ground in a heap. The others turned to face the team and the shoot-out began. Zane felt his shields flicker from shots hitting it as he slid behind a crate, slamming his Barrier down and returning fire whenever he could. The others were hunkered behind crates as well, firing when they could and doing what they could not to get dropped.

"Feels like there's a lot more of these fucks!" Zane called to the others.

"Makes sense! Ain't good for them, though!" Moze hurled a grenade over her cover, swearing sharply when her shield flickered out. "Fuck! One've 'em's got shock! Shorted my fucking shields out!"

"They're certainly growing in tactics and intelligence." FL4K casually rose and fired twice, dropping two of them. "It is both alarming, yet enthralling. I always expected the Children of the Vault to remain naught but mad fools, clawing at one another, but now they can give me a suitable hunt." They kept shooting and kept fighting, gradually thinning the COV presence and forcing the remaining fuckers to backpedal and retreat, though not with a few more dropping dead from suppressing fire.

"Whew…alright then. Reload and let's move on." Zane mantled over the crate and scooped up a discarded mag, pushing it into his pack.

_"Vault Hunters, care for a fun fact while Alistair and I make our way in?"_

"Sure, why not?" Amara shrugged, even though Wainwright probably couldn't see it.

_"We use old booze barrels to give every shot from a Jakobs weapon the proprietary aromatic profile our customers trust and love. It's why there ain't a lotta automatic Jakobs weapons; every batch's unique, and take a while to age to perfection."_

"Interesting," FL4K mused. "if only I could smell properly."

_"Yep; I prefer an oak brandy cask myself…takes much longer to make, but worth the results." _

Well, Zane could admit, that was a fun fact…made him wonder if, when the shite was all handled, he could talk Wainwright into using some of his favorite alcohols to age some powder…though he'd need to come up with a name.

Flynt's Fury came to mind, but he was rarely furious, so it'd be misleading…naming shite's hard.

* * *

Moze kept herself primed and ready as her and the others delved into what looked like a refined study. There weren't any COV around but, in case the fuckers were hiding, she was ready to go and ready to drop the fuckers.

_"Good news, Alistair and I are nearly to the delivery controls," _Wainwright said. _"But you need to clear the room ahead first; we can't risk the fragment ending up in zealot hands." _

"With pleasure." The mere instant they entered the next room, Moze open fired and dropped the nearest COV. The rest of them turned towards her and, this time, the Gunner felt…uneasy, namely because the reduced cover in the room, and the number of guys with sights trained on her.

She dove for cover and pressed herself to a wall just as her shields broke. The others took cover wherever they could as bullets peppered the spot they were at moments ago, riddling it with holes.

"Shit! They're actually prepared, for once! What the fuck?!" She stole a quick glance out and saw two Goliaths were standing ahead, both raining down fire with their LMGs and laying down heavy suppressing fire, allowing more cultists to move up. "Why the FUCK are they playing smart?!"

"No clue, but lemme drop my barrier." Zane threw down his hard-light barrier, letting some of the rounds collide with it and give them enough space to step out and return fire, though said barrier quickly fell and they were force back behind the wall. "…alright then, they know how to concentrate fire…this ain' good."

_"I do believe I have a hunch as to why the COV are this coordinated," _Hammerlock spoke, though he sounded morose. _"Aurelia's no doubt the culprit; it's clear she knows how you all operate and, as a result, instructed her 'disposable help' what to do to counteract you all."_

"Well, that's bullshit." Moze huffed, tossing another grenade out and hearing a bandit cry out. "Whaddya we do, then? They're inevitably gonna try and flank us, if that's the case, and I ain't fighting a two-pronged assault."

"I got a plan." Zane loaded their handgun, slamming in a fresh mag. "Amara, how much can ya lift with yar Phaseslam?"

"A bit? Why?"

"You're gonna give us some smoke." He pointed to one of the barrels of gunpowder nearby. "Throw that shite at 'em, and FL4K can shoot it. The resulting explosion should fuck 'em up 'nough to give us a chance to drop the Goliaths and push the advantage."

"Hmm, alright, let's do it." One of the Siren's ghostly hands shot out and grabbed the barrel, hefting it up before, quite literally, catapulting it at the still-firing Goliaths. FL4K shot up the second it got close and fired a shot, the bullet ripping straight through the barrel and causing it to explode in fiery, glorious fashion. When the smoke cleared, Moze saw both Goliaths were, unfortunately, still alive, but thankfully weren't in good condition, so it took a few shots to down them both.

"Advantage's open; press it!" The Gunner shouted, rushing forward and shooting at the same time. Her shots ripped through an unshielded cultist and causing another to stumble backwards. Now, the fight was turned to their advantage, and from there, it took very little time to clear out the remaining COV fuckers, much to Moze's relief.

"…fuck," She shook her assault rifle. "Outta mags."

"I gotcha." She looked over and saw Amara offering her one. Absent-mindedly, the Gunner reached out to grab it and—

She froze. She felt warmth around her palm. Her eyes shot down and saw her hand was wrapped around Amara's. She wanted to apologize, let go, and take the mag but the words couldn't leave her lips. She just stood there, eyes on the Siren.

"Yo, Mozzy Moze, ya good?" She snapped out of it and let go of Amara's hand.

"Y-Yeah. Might have shellshock from the rounds or something. I dunno." She accepted the mag properly this time and slammed it into her gun, breathing a sharp sigh and turning to walk away.

She needed to get these weird ass feelings under control. Pronto. But, for now, they needed to find the barrel delivery pipe…wherever it was—

"I found a pipe!" She glanced over to Zane, the old fuck standing by a larger pipe, already ready to go.

_"Good work, Vault Hunters, and right on time, too. We're at the controls now." _

_"It's…a closest full of color-coded levers and dials! Winny, you didn't tell me we needed to solve an elaborate puzzle!"_

Moze honestly snickered at that nickname…Winny. Reminded her of a cartoon bear from an old show she watched as a kid…then again, most kids saw that show.

_"Nonsense! An elaborate puzzle's its own reward! Makes you feel accomplished and satisfied when you solve it, especially if you solve it first time. Vault Hunters, all you need to do is push the request button by that there pipe and open the tube near you. We'll solve this puzzle on our end."_

_"Ugh." _

They were gonna be a moment.

* * *

Amara was still a bit…perplexed by Moze's behavior, namely when she tried to give the Gunner a spare mag. That look in her eyes, it wasn't lust and it sure as hell wasn't disgust; more like confusion. She was probably still trying to get a handle on the complicated feelings she was enduring…shame she couldn't give her a hand but, given how prideful Moze was she was certain it'd either backfire, or get weird fast.

Plus, Amara didn't wanna risk jeopardizing things.

The Siren flinched when a barrel smashed into the ground behind her, exploding. "Definitely not the right one, Wainwright." Amara said into her ECHO device, slightly annoyed.

_"Hmm…I guess the code wasn't in that stuffed jabber. Damn."_

_"Wainwright, we need to hurry; the longer we doddle the sooner my sister can—"_

_"I almost got it; 'sides, this is the fun part! A good puzzle's always a good use of time, Alistair." _

Wainwright really liked puzzles…Amara could understand; she always felt nice when she figured out a riddle. But, for now, she could understand Hammerlock's ire; they really weren't in a position to spend time with a puzzle, not with his sister prowling about.

_"Aaaaaaand I think I got it!" _Zane casually mashed the button, currently browsing his ECHO device. The pipe rumbled again and, this time, a regular, gunpowder filled barrel dropped down. _"…that one SHOULD be it." _

"…I…think it might be." Amara approached the barrel and ripped the top off, sifting through the vicious, strong-smelling gunpowder and, sure enough, feeling her fingers grace against the fragment. They got it! "Yep, it's here, Wainwright. We got it."

_"Magnificent! See, Alistair? Puzzles ain't so bad when you get things rolling."_

_"I suppose, and I can see what you mean, now; it IS satisfying when a hard puzzle's solved, but we should hurry. You and I both know I don't relish the inevitable confrontation with my sister."_

_"True. Vault Hunters, meet us near the gardens. I'll do what I can to open the way for you and—"_

Static. Amara froze.

"…oh shite." Zane muttered. "That didn' sound good." Amara was the first out the room, running as fast as she could while, occasionally, unloading a buckshot into a bandit's face as her and the others rushed for the garden. If Aurelia found them, and if she was as dangerous as Hammerlock said, they were as good as dead. She refused to let such a thing come to pass.

The Siren was the first to smash through the set of doors leading to the foyer and—

**_CRISSSSSH!_**

Sudden pain filled her and her charge was halted. Panic shot up Amara's spine as she realized she was frozen from the waist down, and a swift glance to her side told her the others were in the same state; frozen from the waist down…except for FL4K; they were entirely frozen.

"Not yet, whores," That smarmy, astute voice chided. Amara glared ahead to see Aurelia standing ahead…and ahead of her, against the doors, were Wainwright and Hammerlock. "I have unfinished business with my brother. Now step aside, Alistair, else I'll shoot right through you."

"Then do so, sister," Hammerlock declared, placing himself in front of Wainwright. "but first, please, I implore you to listen to me. Heed me. You don't have to do this; you don't have to help the twins."

"Oh, this should be amusing." The ice baron chided, tugging back the hammer for her revolver. "And why shouldn't I? They're on the winning team and, by helping them, I net myself an extra trillion dollars. Even someone as foolish as you can see that's too good of a deal to pass up."

"And what happens when they turn on you? Sister, the twins are nothing but evil, you're…you aren't."

"Ha! Now that's a riot, Alistair." Aurelia chortled. "You're still under the delusion that I can 'change sides' and help you? That we can be a family? I knew you were a fool but now you're almost making me feel pity." The entire time Aurelia mocked Hammerlock, Amara was busy trying to free herself, as were the others, but it was no use: Zane couldn't get to his tools, and Moze's arm was frozen, preventing her from calling Iron Bear. Aurelia knew exactly where to aim, and it infuriated the Siren even more.

"It's no delusion, Aurelia," Hammerlock sighed. "I want us to be a family again, on the same side, like when were children—"

"When we were children, mother and father always fawned over you." Aurelia snapped. "They always showered you with affection and praise but the only time I was given an ounce of affection is when I _fought_ for it. It's why I'm where I am now, and you're where _you_ are."

"I'm content with my place in things, sister," Hammerlock's metal hand clamped down on Wainwright's. "with someone who loves me, and in the company of friends. I'm sorry that our parents didn't give you the same things they gave me but, really, perhaps it's because they knew you would turn out okay. You remember our childhood well; mother and father were frequently there for me because I wasn't strong enough to stand on my own. But you? Even with how vile you were back then, you were shrewd and capable. You didn't need it."

"So, that justifies it, then?" The baron huffed. "That justifies why they didn't love me enough? Hmph." She shook her head. "This conversation is over, Alistair. Step aside."

"I refuse. If you intend to—

**_BANG!_**

"Alistair! No!" Hammerlock stumbled back, clutching his side. He slumped against the wall, breaths coming out in ragged pants as Wainwright focused his death-glare on Aurelia. "I'm blowin' you straight to hell, harpy!"

"Oh, cute, threaten the one with a ranged firearm." Amara continued to hammer away at the ice, fists leaving dents in it but sending jolts of icy pain up her arms each time. Her Phaseslam couldn't reach the bitch from where she was, nor could her astral arms. So, she had to get free and get down there to save them.

She refused to let them die; the Tiger of Partali never let _anyone_ die!

The ice shattered and Amara stumbled forward. Aurelia turned away, a bemused look on her face. "Oh, you broke free…should have applied more. Sirens can always be quite fickle."

"I know, now get the hell away from my friends." Her fists slammed together. Her tattoos glowed bright and, around her, her astral arms formed, now engulfed in flames and hovering close to her back.

"Oh, this should be amusing." Icy pillars erupted from the ground and Aurelia stepped backwards, hand shooting towards Amara and sending a shard of ice flying towards her. One of the astral arms shot up to grab it, melting it into steam before she rocketed towards the ice baron, slamming all the fists in the ground together and causing spires of fire to arc up for a moment. She honestly had no idea she could use such abilities, but she damn sure didn't plan on letting them go to waste.

Aurelia stood back, spewing ice everywhere and trying her best to turn the damned room into a fridge, but Amara kept moving, enflamed fists smashing and melting the ice as the Siren made her way towards the baron.

One of her fists made contact with Aurelia and sent her into the wall, though that flicker along her skin told Amara she wore a shield generator…that would be hazardous.

"Mara Mar, keep it up!" Zane called. The old man was mostly freed himself now, quite literally just shooting at his icy parts. "…and don' mind this. It's workin'."

She just…left him to that and returned her focus to Aurelia.

"Do you yield?" Amara asked, keeping her fists at the ready. She knew there was a good chance she didn't, so in case, she was ready to start sending the fists at her.

"…why ask a question you know the answer to, Siren?" The ice bitch huffed. "I refuse." The astral arms shot for Aurelia and an ice wall rose to block them, only to be melted right through in a flash. Blow after blow and attack after attack; everything Aurelia did, Amara easily countered her. The ice bitch's shields shattered at last and she staggered into a wall, huffing and panting in exertion.

Bullets peppered her a second later, courtesy of Moze. "Mara! Now!" The Siren leapt upwards and, slammed down, directly impacting Aurelia with a Phaseslam, ending her fight and ending the icy bitch's life in a splash of fire and steam.

…for once, she didn't take pleasure in a fight. It was a good fight, yes, but this one harrowed her for its nature…for how much it hurt a friend.

Speaking of, Hammerlock was still hurt. She needed to find a syringe to help him.

* * *

Hammerlock was healed physically, but far from mentally.

FL4K stood nearby the others, looking over the battered, bloodied form of Aurelia. She was in a slight crater, still and unmoving. She was deceased, and in splendid fashion, too…

…a shame such a splendid fight came at the cost of Hammerlock's efforts.

"For what it is worth, Hammerlock," The Beastmaster spoke, turning his head to the older gentleman, who was being supported by Wainwright due to his healing injury. "your words were good ones…she was just too far gone to heed them."

"Unfortunately," His voice was brittle; it was clear he was trying not to cry. Trying to be strong. "but…well she can't hurt anyone ever again, and with the New-U Stations down…this really IS the end for her…the end of my family."

"Family ain't always who you share blood with," Wainwright shook his head. "it's who you stand with…who's there with you when the chips are down, and who'll stick with you 'til the end…and that's what I'll do."

"And I can't thank you enough. At the very least, we have the key…and, hopefully, my sister finds peace wherever she goes. For now, I shall join you all on Sanctuary soon…Wainwright and I should, at the very least, grant her a proper burial." The two of them hefted up the ice baron's carcass and hauled her towards the door, the Beastmaster watching them the entire time.

Family was always a fickle thing, but they were glad Hammerlock swiftly learned that, indeed, it wasn't just blood, but instead those who stood with you.

It was why he considered the other Vault Hunters family. They stood with them, and they would continue to stand with them until the fight was won.

* * *

[Kinda choked a bit in the end; got occupied with things and fixing some system issues with my laptop. Thankfully, those are resolved, and here's the chapter. With the death of Aurelia, we reach the midpoint of this project, so that's good.

So, reviews; I plan to cover more of Zane's stuff with his brothers, but probably down the line, and maybe in a non-canon chapter.

Thanks for reading this, and perhaps one day I can get a turnabout like this for my Wattpad content. I'll put more work into that place once I finish this story. Should take a few more months.]


	42. The Why

"Well, good work, people." Zane nursed a bottle of beer as he listened to Lilith's praise over a job well done. The Operative and the other Vault Hunters were, once again, in the bridge, and the final fragment was with Tannis.

He still questioned how she got the key to assemble but, knowing her weird arse, probably something he didn't wanna know.

"We're ahead of the COV and ready to make a move on the Eden-6 Vault," Lilith sighed, shaking her head. "This time, though, Tannis' come up with a solution to ensure we don't give the twins what they want this time and deny them additional power."

"Wait," Amara crossed her arms. "Our goal's to simply starve them out?"

Lilith shrugged. "More or less; due to some…setbacks, I had to adapt and change the plan a bit. Here's the final copy, I guess; we're eliminating every Vault Monster and rendering it useless to the COV so the twins inevitably run out of power and either take one another our or, even better, give us a bead where they're really hiding so we can put 'em down for good."

"Sounds fuckin' weird. I'm in." Zane set his bottle down. "But now what? We wait 'til Tannis' done with…whatever weird shite she does?"

"Yep. So, you have today off. Do whatever with it, and first thing in the morning—"

"What morning? We're in SPACE!" Claptrap shouted from…somewhere in the room. Zane was annoyed yet bemused; hadn't seen much of the lil' shite.

Lilith rolled her eyes. "Twenty four hours, starting now. Use it well, Vault Hunters, 'cause tomorrow—" Lilith aimed a handgun behind her, no doubt aiming at Claptrap if he corrected her again. "we hit the twins where it hurts." The group rose and got ready to head out. "Wait, FL4K, Maya's asked for you. She should be down at the range."

"She's safe to be shootin', right?" Zane raised a brow. "Kinda thought one needed more time to recover from nearly gettin' the life sucked from 'em."

"Maya's tough," Lilith shrugged. "And she hates feeling helpless, so she likes to roam Sanctuary, trying to hurry and get her strength back. But, anyways, she's asking for you again, FL4K, so best get a move on."

"Understood." The robot turned and left, leaving the others to venture out the bridge themselves, save for Zane.

He had questions.

"So, we're one step closer to royally fuckin' the twins." Zane clasped his hands together and stood up from his seat. "Must feel good, right Lil'?"

"Heh, hell yeah," Lilith smirked. "we take those fuckers down, I get my powers back and make sure those monsters don't turn the whole galaxy into their personal playground."

"Fair, but what happens after this? For ya?" Zane questioned.

Lilith furrowed her brow. "I guess we'll put Sanctuary back on Pandora and go back to being the Crimson Raiders; keeping a semblance of unity on that hellscape of a planet 'til the next big threat shows up. And, let's face it, there's gonna be another."

"What makes ya so sure?"

"There always is. As I told my friends a while back, after we dealt with Jack, there ain't no rest for the wicked."

"Hmph, amen, sister." Zane chuckled. "Ya done good leading Sanctuary this long; I'm sure y'all be able to steer 'em right when y'all are back on Pandora."

"Hmm, it sounds like you plan on taking off when this is all over."

"Nah, gon' stick with the team, see where that takes me. We might go on vacation once or twice, though. Wanna hit Promethea when it ain' a shitehole. Might even strut me stuff in a club or six." The Operative turned and made his way for the door with a smirk. Lilith was…certainly an odd commander, but at the end of the day, she was alright.

In a sense, she reminded him of how his brothers ran things, only she wanted her flock to stay alive, and not serve as cannon fodder.

He appreciated that.

* * *

"So, Moze, what can I getcha today? Somethin' shocking? Somethin' explosive? Maybe a lil' bit of both?" Moze rolled her eyes at Marcus' words. The Gunner looked over the wares in his little 'hole in the wall' store, arms crossed, and brow furrowed. She _hated_ visiting the greedy fucker's store; she always assumed he was trying to screw her over with the prices and, often, she assumed right. But, due to rising issues and circumstances, she needed to change her arsenal and, thus, that meant she needed more guns. Sure, she liked her assault rifle, but she needed something with enough firepower to drop those bandits before they got even more dangerous.

"Just…fucking…get me an assault rifle that can blow a bandit's head off."

"Gotta be specific, Moze; most of my assault rifles can do that, if you know where to aim." Marcus grinned. Moze growled. "Might I suggest somethin' 'up your alley' then?"

"The _fuck_ does that mean?"

"Well, and this is jus' me guesin', you like guns with the right stoppin' power but, also, accuracy. Maybe a nice Dahl rifle I got in a recent shipment. Fair stoppin' power, but also comes with a neat scope you can switch."

"…hmm…maybe…" Movement behind her caught her focus. Moze looked over her shoulder and saw FL4K walking by…with Ava in tow, holding a hefty sniper rifle. "The fuck? FL4K?"

The Beastmaster came to a stop and turned towards Moze. "Hello, Moze. Shopping for a new gun, I'm guessing?"

"Yeah, but what about you? Where're you going with Ava?"

"FL4K's showing me how to snipe properly! We're gonna fuck up some cultists on Eden-6!" Ava excitedly exclaimed. "I'll be one step closer to being a good Vault Hunter at this rate!"

"Uh…huh. Maybe we should…hold off on that. Eden-6 is dangerous right now." She was trying to come up with an excuse for FL4K; namely because she doubted they wanted to take Ava—

"I already checked the area, Moze. It is fine. And, besides, I was the one who approached with the idea."

Moze slowly inhaled. "FL4K, can I have a word in private?" Ava slowly stepped away and Moze moved to one of the many hallways of Sanctuary, along with the robot. "What the FUCK, man? She's got no business being a Vault Hunter—"

"Who decided that?" They asked. "She seems dead set towards the idea and hasn't bene turned into giblets, yet. Who are we to deny her such a goal?"

"Ugh just…this isn't a life for a teenager, FL4K, not to mention she's still inexperienced. She's not ready for this shit."

"Hence why I will make her ready. She proved she can hold her own on Promethea, and had she not been there, Maya would have perished or, worse, we would have. Her actions held the twins off, granting valued time for us to return from that howling abyss."

"Yeah but…ngh…" They raised a good point and she hated it. "I just don't want her to go out there and get killed. She has a whole life ahead of her; I don't want her life to end with her being beaten to death by a psycho or whatever else they do to people."

"Hmm. Moze, have you actually spoken to Ava?"

Moze raised a brow. "I mean…no? Never had a chance."

"I have; she has no life ahead of her." The Beastmaster motioned to the teenager who, even now, was fiddling with the sniper and lifting it up. "She was an urchin back home; her parents gone, family dissolved, and sleeping in alleys. Had she not met Maya, she would have inevitably died in the cold winters when they came. Because of that, Maya became more than a mentor for her; the former Siren became her family."

"I…I get that."

"Good, then you should understand the real 'why' behind her goal. She wishes to become like Maya, for Maya was the one who brought her back from the brink. She doesn't want to fill the former Siren's shoes just for the glamour and fame being a Vault Hunter brings but because it is all she knows. Most only turn to a life of being a Vault Hunter when they're at their last resort; Ava never had a resort to begin with." Moze glanced back towards the eager, energetic teen, and felt a pang of pity and regret. This really was all she knew, and most likely all she would ever know…at the very least, she was being taught by someone Moze trusted.

"Just…will she even make it as a Vault Hunter?"

"No one knows, and that is the glory of it. None just wake up and decide to be the best; that comes through Fate's decision. The most we can do is tip the scales for her, which is why I'm teaching her to snipe and, potentially, asking Wainwright for a gun for her. Something fancy."

"Huh…when're you guys leaving? I might ask for something, too." She could use a Jakobs gun. Maybe a fancy revolver. That, and she kinda wanted to see how things turned out for Ava. Maybe the kid wouldn't turn out so shitty.

Maybe she could help with that a bit. Who knew?

* * *

[So…yep. Another Ava chapter, or at the very least, me trying to humanize and make her likeable still. Here, I gave the why behind her goals of becoming a Vault Hunter; really, it makes sense psychologically. The person who saved her life and gave her the things she sought was a Vault Hunter so, naturally, it'd make sense for them to try to be one as well; just like a son seeing their father as a businessman and wanting to do the same. I also wanted another "calm before the storm" chapter as, next, we're handling the creature on Eden-6 and the fallout from that. We all know what it entails well, though later I may try to add side-quests.

For now, reviews.

-I didn't know Amara had a list of one-liners; may have to try browsing those dialogue changes again. When I initially played through Borderlands 3 I did it as FL4K, so I never had a chance to play her.

-I did what I could to make Moze seem more troubled because it's how her character came off as, I suppose. I did have an idea to give her PTSD flashbacks early in writing this story but I abandoned that because, from what I saw, she doesn't seem "too" troubled by what happened. I'm not entirely sure.

We're getting there together, people. Thanks for reading, and please stay safe out there. You all matter; remember that.]


	43. The Grave

It was showtime. Another Vault to be cleared and another fuck you to be delivered to the COV.

Zane adjusted himself once again in his seat as he and the others rode in the stolen Maliwan ship, in transit to the Vault's theorized location. For once, he was fine tuning his firearms and making sure they had that **_pop_**; he'd be damned if he'd let a repeat of the last time happen.

A glance up told him the others were preparing as well, though not as vigorously. Zane figured they already made the checks.

"So," He turned to their faithful pilot; the Commando from Maya's fun filled past. "How long 'til we can blow shite up?"

"Not much longer; once you all are groundside, you gotta clear a path to the Vault and…y'know kill the Vault monster. I think Wainwright's already worked on solving the puzzle down there, so it shouldn't be as hard."

"Good, not in the mood for a shitty puzzle." Moze huffed. "I just wanna get this over with so we can force those fuckers to fuck up."

"My, you're in a mood, Moze." Amara mused, causing the Gunner to…grow flustered? The fuck?

"I-I just wanna hurry this shit up, nothing to it." Zane silently chuckled but went back to upkeep. It was honestly no secret Moze had something for Amara, but was too…well he wanted to say chicken-shite, but he knew saying that meant she'd shoot him in the face, and considering the small soldier was packing a shock weapon, he'd like to avoid getting shot.

Zane focused when he heard the ship slow down. "Alright! Drop in, people!" The Operative was the first out, riding the ship's grav lift down and finding himself nearby the terrace for the Jakobs' estate.

Wainwright himself stood in front of said terrace, carefully lighting a cigar. "Switch's inside, Vault Hunters. It'll reveal the entrance to the Vault. Honestly, I wanted to wait 'til y'all got back from your day off so we could do this together, but…well your commander friend urged me to handle it alone."

"Oh no…what a shame." Zane was being VERY sarcastic; puzzles irked him still, and he owed Lilith a pint.

"Yeah, but I guess y'all get another chance to show how adventurous you are, then."

"Psh, I'm adventurous as hell." Moze boasted. "I've eaten lots of street meat; hell, fry something up and I'll eat it. Anything." Zane couldn't tell if she was fucking around or being serious.

"We will test that when we return," FL4K suddenly spoke. "Mr. Chew brought me what I assume to be varkid meat. We will test that."

"…fuck." Definitely fucking around.

Still, the team advanced to the pool of water and, as Wainwright said, an intricate switch rose. Said switch Amara pressed in a flash.

Zane's eyes widened as ornate stone rose from…well the depths below, rising and coalescing together to form a massive bridge leading to, no doubt, the Vault.

"There she is, Vault Hunters. My family legacy." Wainwright approached the terrace, watching the bridge form with a smile on his face. "A small price to pay for bringing the Jakobs corporation back to its rightful owners. You have my thanks. Now go fuck those twins over, especially that rat bastard." The bridge was completed and the team advanced forwards once more, walking together across.

_"Head to the Vault and I will meet you there." _Tannis said in…well he guessed his ECHO. Hard to say. _"Once we awaken the guardian, do what you all do best…within reason. Wouldn't want to accidentally blow up the bridge and send you all plummeting towards a gruesome, messy demise thousands of miles below the ground."_

"…and ya put that in me head for what reason?"

_"Science."_

Zane hated Tannis.

* * *

Moze wasn't looking forward to two things; FL4K's challenge, and going after this Vault monster. Granted, it was different than the Promethea Vault, on the grounds of the COV not knowing where said Vault was and, therefore, being unable to intervene. But, still, they were about to fight a damn near eldritch horror; no one actually looked forward to that…except weirdos.

Speaking of weirdos, Tannis stood by the end of the bridge. "Ah, Vault Hunters, right on time. I suppose you four are ready?"

"As ready as we'll ever be." Amara nodded. "Do the twins know we're here?"

"Unlikely. Due to how intrusive they've been, I've taken the liberty of scrambling your ECHO signals. How I've done that in the time we spoken? Don't worry about it. Just know, currently, they think you're on the other side of the planet." Moze was…surprised by such a trick, and glad for it too. That _definitely_ meant the twins were shit outta luck when it came to stopping them.

The five of them pressed on and reached a massive archway, one that sported a sharp drop past it. If it was anything like every other fight they've gone through, they were about to fight.

Amara was the first one who stepped over, dropping down. Zane and FL4K followed suit, leaving Moze to be the last one down, though she called out Iron Bear as she landed, leading to her mech slamming into the ground, ready to fight.

Ahead of them was the iconic archway every Vault sported. When Amara slammed the key into its place, two strange creatures just…materialized; appearing out of thin air! Of course, both were put down quickly.

_"Guardians? Here? This makes no sense." _Tannis grumbled. _"There is supposed to be an enormous monster in the Vault." _The ground rumbled and shook. Moze turned around in Iron Bear and saw _something_ literally awakening on the edge of the area…something massive and foreboding. Worse yet, from the slain Guardians, magenta colored energy drifted from their corpses and towards the rising creature, disappearing into it and causing the creature to finally rise and stare down at them all.

"…I'm guessing that's the Vault Monster."

_"I do believe so. Well, ask for a monster, get a monster. Do be careful." _The team open fired on the creature, raining down shots and perforating its plant-covered hide. Zane had long since deployed his barrier, using it to defend himself from stray shots while returning fire.

A wet splat caught her attention. Moze turned Iron Bear and saw a jabber standing nearby…a jabber that was ready to fling something she didn't wanna name at her.

"Oh HELL no!" She lit the fucker up with both miniguns, reducing it to bloody ribbons as she saw more jabbers drop down into the area, joined by other native fauna of the planet. Seemed this Vault Monster was keen on calling help.

Bad for both sides, really.

The fight continued. FL4K popped the heads of a few saurian as Moze dismissed Iron Bear, dropping down and raining down fire onto the Vault monster with her AR. The thing was definitely getting more pissed off so, clearly, they were going in the right direction.

She flinched when one of its massive hands slammed into the ground, leaving a hefty crater in it and narrowly missing Zane. "Ah, shite, fucker almost got me."

"You think?" Moze huffed and stumbled. Her stumbling became sliding as she realized the fucker was _tilting_ the whole arena, causing her to slide towards the edge, where a pit to the literal abyss awaited.

"OH FUCK—!" Something caught her hand. Moze looked up to see Amara clutching her hand, leaving her other literally embedded into the stone. The Siren saved her, and while Moze wanted to thank her, she…couldn't. Every time she tried to say the words they died before they could leave her mouth. Staring at the Siren left her dumbstruck and she silently panicked; what if Amara could see it? What if Amara could see her expression?!

She sure as fuck hoped not.

* * *

Amara was a bit…confused and concerned by Moze's expression. A furious blush had exploded across her face and her lips moved rapidly, as if she were silently stuttering. It was one she knew well, being lovestruck, but not one she expected from Moze…at least not so soon. She had the urge to comment on it but, considering they were fighting a monster, now wasn't the time, nor the place.

"Snap outta it, Moze!" The Siren felt the ground return to normal, allowing her to yank Moze up and set her on her own two feet. "This thing shouldn't have much time left. Let's end it."

"Y-Y-Yeah, right. Fuck…gimme a sec." The Gunner shook her head fervently and sighed. "Right, ready." Bullets, rockets, and other things were sent back at the vault monster, the team raining literal hellfire onto the monster and giving it the same treatment as the one on Promethea.

The monster soon gave a harrowing, distorted call and slumped onto the area, still and unmoving. "…did…did we get it?" Zane asked from afar. "Cause I don' know if these shites know how to play dead."

_"It's dead, Vault Hunters, well done." _Tannis confirmed. _"Now, I've been working on some experimental technology that SHOULD allow us to neutralize the Vault Monster's energy, rendering it useless. I'll be there shortly to utilize such technology." _True to Tannis' word, the researcher soon walked past Amara, giving the Siren mild concern how she was that quiet. Once she was in front of the slain Vault monster, Tannis seemed to…enter something into a little console and raised her arms up. From the slain Vault monster that same, magenta colored energy wafted from its form…and went straight into Tannis' form. The normally weird and slightly creepy scientist now let out grunts of effort and frustration. Amara holstered her shotgun and took a step towards her—

"N-Not yet!" She shouted through clenched teeth. "If you approach, buff Siren, the power may jump to you and make you a beacon to the COV, and by now they no doubt know we're here."

"Alright…then." On one hand, Amara was incredibly worried about the success rate of the mission and the risks if they failed…but on the other, did Tannis seriously not know her name?

Finally, after a tormenting pause, Tannis stepped back, huffing and panting in exertion. "Whew! Haugh…excellent. I-It worked. I told Lilith it would."

"So, they can't do anything with this?" Moze questioned.

"Precisely! Hammerlock told me, when hunting a beast, it's best to deny it sustenance. Now that we know this works, we can simply move to the next Vault and do the same, further weakening the twins. After all, starving creatures make mistakes."

"That they do." FL4K eerily confirmed.

_"What the actual DICK. Did you just kill that thing for good?! Come on! Now there's no point in any of this!" _It sounded like Tyreen knew. _"Uuuuuugggh! I'm so hungryyyy! I guess I'll…I dunno…leech a pile of tinks…might do…something." _

_"You guys really suck, you know that? Totally uncalled for." _

FL4K inhaled. Oh no.

"This is what is called a 'reality check'. Enjoy it; you won't get many more of these before I wear your fingers as a necklace. So, now you have a choice; continue to sit in the sidelines like cowards while we destroy your food or face us directly. Oh, and Troy? I still have some of your skin trapped between my knuckles."

"Well," Tannis cleared her throat. "That seems to…that seems to have shut them up—wonder why we didn't do such things when dealing with Jack…then again, engaging him would have simply inflated his ego even further than it already was. Regardless, you may enter the Vault and claim your 'loot'. Meanwhile. I will examine the Eridian technology out here—perhaps we can make use of it." Amara nodded. The arch started to reassemble itself and, like last time, created a dark, violet portal.

"Well, let's hope they have a good shotgun in here. Or maybe an SMG…been needing a good one." Amara did silently wonder how guns found their way into an ancient Vault but, honestly, those were questions she really didn't care for.

And, with that, her and the others delved into the Vault to, once again, reap their rewards, though now with little chance of the twins fucking things up.

Or so she hoped.

* * *

FL4K emerged from the portal, holding a fancy, new sniper rifle. It was of remarkable craft and reminded them much of the one they got from Zer0, but far more refined and far more deadly.

A glance around told them they were the first to emerge. The others perhaps needed more time.

"Tannis," They turned to the scientist, still hard at work fiddling with some of the technology. "what have you learned?"

"Well, for starters, this Vault is, somehow, connected to the one on Promethea, Pandora, and even another I cannot recognize. The twins could be speaking the truth about this 'Great Vault' they're so…earnest on opening."

"They will not live to see its opening; you and I know that."

"True true. Regardless, once the others return from the Vault we must return to Sanctuary together. Lilith will want to hear about my findings, and—"

A flash of crimson momentarily blinded them. When their optic refocused, they saw Tannis was gone.

"…fuck." FL4K grunted.

_"HA! Phaselock'd outta nowhere! Whaddya think about that, Vault Thief!?"_

"That you are a fool; you had a chance to halt us and, instead, you chose her."

_"It's all part of the plan, tin man. When you fuckers killed that monster, I thought we were screwed, but we've got our eye on a bigger prize." _

FL4K switched COM channels. He wasn't going to entertain the rat's ego stroking. "Lilith, we have an issue. The Calypsos managed to kidnap Tannis."

_"What?! Damnit…Axton's en route. Get back here ASAP." _

The others emerged from the portal, glancing around. "Eh…where'd Tannis—"

"The twins have taken her," FL4K cut Zane off. "Lilith wants us back on Sanctuary now."

"MotherFUCKER!" Moze swore.

"I share your ire, Moze. For once, the fools have managed to hinder us greatly. Without her, we lose our means of finding the Vaults before they do." They could hear the approaching ship. FL4K was, finally, worried; the twins had managed to do something beyond what they speculated and planned out, and that had them unsettled, not just because of Tannis' capture but because, clearly, Troy was getting a handle on his stolen powers, as was Tyreen. That meant, inevitably, they'd become too big to kill.

Then what?

* * *

[And here's the Graveward; didn't really mention it's name because, canonly, I wasn't sure how they'd KNOW it's name, outside of maybe Tannis. And, with this, we're reaching the return to Pandora and, with it, the final stages of our little ensemble here.

So, reviews:

-Improving Ava's character honestly wasn't as cumbersome as I originally thought; it's tricky at times, yes, but really, I just needed to give her rational reasons for doing the things she did and make her less of a raving, dumb teenager and someone with literally nothing left to cling to, except Vault Hunting. The previous chapter affirmed this.

-FL4K serving as Ava's teacher was improvised, but now that it's been done, it feels right. They like murdering, so it'd make sense for them to teach someone else to murder also. Maybe down the road I'll give her stuff with the others; maybe in the DLC spinoffs.

-Clay's not around cause I think he's still on Eden-6 somewhere. Didn't really plan for him to come aboard Sanctuary with them.

-Right, I did have an oversight regarding Zane and moonshine. My mistake.

With the Graveward down, we're making a return to Pandora. So, this should be fun. Oh, I DO plan on including Side Quests, though most likely in 'off time' chapters…it'd make little sense for them to do a side quest now when Tannis has been kidnapped.

Even though we've all done it.]


	44. A Plan Made

Zane damn near kicked in the door to the bridge with his speed. "I got here as fast as I fuckin' could, Lil'."

"…did you now?" The former Siren pointed to the plate of sliders in his hand.

"…Moxxi was havin' a sale. I'm still the first one here—"

"No, you aren't." Zane glanced over. Moze and the others were sitting around, with the Gunner sporting an irked expression. Even Ava was there, which was…weird, to say the least. "Fuckwad."

"These sliders are fuckin' amazin', Mozzy Moze."

"Augh…let's focus. The COV have Tannis. Considering her importance, this is the literal worst-case scenario. Now we don't have a damn means of finding the damn key fragments…grr…I should've sent reinforcements with her. Should've done _something_, like what Roland would've done…" Zane's jovial mood faded once more when he saw Lilith wasn't just angry, she was…hurt. Broken, even. It sounded like she was blaming herself for Tannis' capture.

"Lil," Zane spoke, firmly and, for once, without his usual tone. "This one ain' on ya. Blamin' yerself ain' gonna do shite either except give 'em what they want, and that ain' what we want, right?"

"Yeah!" Ava chimed in, much to Zane's slight chagrin. "And you're talking about her like she's dead already, but there's still time!"

"Ava raises a fair point," FL4K chimed in. "Despite my words, the twins show some intelligence; it's unlikely they'll outright kill Tannis, not when they went through such an effort to capture her."

"Um…not to break things up," Claptrap shouted from afar. "But we have an incoming transmission!"

"Of course…" Lilth grumbled.

"_We kidnapped your scientist," _Tyreen said, but in a really poor attempt at a spooky voice.

"_If you ever want to see her alive…heh, it's not gonna happen." _And there was Troy.

"_Yeah, cause you eat BUTTS." _

"…the fuck are we dealing with again? Seven year olds…?" Moze whispered to Amara.

"_Anyhow, spoiler, we are CRAZY close to opening the Great Vault. We found the key, bee-tee-dubs, and it is HUGE! So, we need a crap-ton of Eredium to charge it and you know what that means! Pledge Drive! And, since our followers go apeshit whenever we maim or murder one of you, we put the next one up to a vote."_

"I don' like the sound of this shite…" Zane murmured.

"_Yeah, for clarification," _Troy cut in. _"Our followers were voting on which of you we should kill. Amusingly, weird scientist was our most requested murder, followed by your fucking robot."_

"Somehow, that offends me." FL4K grunted.

"_Speaking of murder, Carnivora's getting' hungry! The show's starting soon! And it's gonna be a KILLER." _The transmission ended, and Lilith hung her head lower.

"They're gonna kill her if we don't do something," Ava said suddenly. "We gotta stop them! Somehow! I have no ideas, though."

"Haugh…Tannis risked everything to keep Tyreen from getting to that Vault Monster. She deserves MUCH better than dying for the entertainment of two psychopaths." Now, the former Siren had a determined, focused face, one that Zane was honestly glad to see. "Saddle up, Vault Hunters, we're heading back to Pandora to rescue her."

"Heh, we can do that easily, Lilith…well…almost," Amara mused. "I'm a stranger to Pandora, so what exactly is this Carnivora? Because they it sounds like they wanna let it kill her."

"It sounds like a beast."

"I'm not sure myself. Really, the only one who'd know about it is Vaughn."

"Vaughn? That strangely ripped weenie?" Moze questioned with a snort.

"…sounds like you like that, Mozzy Moze—"

"Bite me."

"Vaughn should know because he's been monitoring COV chatter and movements from an old Crimson Raider outpost in Devil's Razor. I sent him there, of course, for his own safety, and so he wasn't in the way." Lilith sighed. "At this point, he's our best bet in finding out what this Carnivora is, and how to safe Tannis before they kill her."

"_You got this Vault Hunters, you freakin' animals," _Balex said from his spot on the dashboard. _"Go save that science lady!" _

"Thanks for the encouragement, plush man. Let's get movin', people. We ain' got a lotta time for once, so let's be quick, be focused, and be organized."

"Hmph, that's unlike you, Zane." Amara teased. "But it's glad to know you're taking the situation this seriously."

"I am, hence why 'quick, focused, and organized' are code for 'blow everythin' the fuck up and surprise those bastards so they won' know what hit 'em'." Amara just sighed. He shrugged. "It's worked more times than I'd like to admit, so let's get movin." The team filed out, though Zane lingered for a moment, glancing back to Lilith. "We'll get her back, Lil, and then we gon' murder those fuckers."

"Heh, just what I needed to hear." The Operative plucked a flash from his pocket and turned to join the others. He wished he could head back to Pandora under better circumstances, but this was fine too.

Besides, Pandora wasn't normal if shite wasn't exploding, and they were about to cause _loads_ of those!

* * *

[Short chapter, namely setting the stage for the takedown of everyone's favorite murder carnival. It'll give me more time to reflect on the place and how intense things are, too.

So, with all things, let's get to the reviews, now with flavors.

(To Le055Li0n): I'm glad you enjoy how Amara and Moze's bond is going. It's hard to right properly, but I'm managing as best I can. As for Ava, I've said enough about her in the older chapters.

(To B.E.A.T.N): We're indeed reaching the crescendo of this story, so I'm glad everyone's enjoying it and along for the ride.

(To a Guest): If the writers did better, I wouldn't be required to fix Ava, but, who knows? There rests a chance she'll be salvaged in the DLCs.

Thanks for the support again, and I hope you'll stick with me til the end of this ride.]


	45. Return to Pandora and entering Carnivora

Zane was the first one off the dropship, landing with a stretch and taking a long, deep breath. Pandora still smelt like it always did; reeking of a mixture of death, shit, and a fine hint of blood; all things that made the planet as horrid as it was, at least for the unprepared.

Considering his upbringing, he was _far_ from unprepared. Overprepared was probably a better word.

The others dropped out from the dropship, the team looking up at the Crimson Raider outpost that, judging from the dinks and dust, hadn't seen use for quite some time.

"_Welcome to Roland's Rest_," Lilith said through his ECHO. _"an…important place to all Crimson Raiders, and where Vaughn currently is." _Zane looked up at the statue of who he assumed to be Roland; considering what he heard about the man, he was the prime definition of a leader. A hero.

It's funny, Pandora wasn't usually a place for heroes; took balls and brains alike to become one.

"_Hi, hello? I'm alive! For now." _Tannis' voice resonated in his head, though it made Zane jump a bit from instinct. Felt like she was right over his fucking shoulder. _"It seems Eridian professors are like Vault Keys; everyone wants a piece." _

"…y'all hear Tannis too, right?" Amara nodded. "Was that her attempt at a joke, or am I goin' as crazy as she is?"

"I…think it was an attempt. I'm not sure." The Siren responded.

"_It was. Gallows humor aside, a rescue would be quite welcome, as clearly it looks like I'm to be tortured and killed for the amusement of a crowd. I still have some tricks up my sleeve, yes, but I fear using them would only change the method of my death, and potentially make them change from slow and horrible to agonizing and infinite." _

"We will see what we can do, Tannis. We need to locate Vaughn, first." FL4K said.

"Right, yeah, time ain' somethin' we got a lotta. Vaughn! Ya in there? Say somethin' dumb if ya are!" Zane called.

"…what counts as dumb, here?" Moze asked.

"Mostly anythin' he says—"

"_Hey, you're back! Reunion~!" _Oh shite, the shitebirds were back in his ear. Zane, curtly, switched to a different ECHO frequency. He wasn't in the mood to entertain the fuck wits.

"Tell me if those idiots say anythin' I should be worried about." Zane was already walking ahead, looking around the semi-abandoned place for any signs of Vaughn.

"Oh! H-Hey! You're back!" And there he was. The 'poor' bandit walked out of a metal-lined building, still…walking around with no fucking pants. Oh joy. "Welcome to my new clan—the Pectoral Libration Alliance! Heh, I'm just kidding. Go Crimson Raiders! Haha."

Zane shot Moze a look that said everything. "Glad ya haven' gotten eaten yet, I guess."

"Yep. It's been hell keepin' safe out here, especially ever since Troy Calypso snatched our turrets a while back. Only thing keepin' us safe was…well lotta guns and hiding."

"Hang on, _us?" _Moze asked. Right on cue, a few soldiers emerged and started moving about. "…the fuck? Where were these guys?"

"Oh, all across Pandora. When the twins left with most of their 'flock' lotta 'em came outta hiding and came here to help. We even found this one guy who—"

An explosion made Zane visibly flinch. The Operative looked over to see a Technical smashed into a wall, with a squirming, bleeding cultist attached to the hood.

"Found a snooper, Vaughn! I thought these pendejos learned after the last six times." The man who dropped down was…well Zane almost assumed he was a Tink, given his height. Short, stout, and fat with muscle, he had an unkempt beard and what Zane guessed was a mohawk atop his head as, to finish his odd look, the short man had an assortment of guns strapped to his person, one gun currently aimed at the unfortunate cultist. The short man laid eyes on them and grinned. "These the amigos Lilith said were coming?"

"Y-Yeah. Just gonna inform them what's going on. You…um…have fun over there."

"…friend of yours?"

Vaughn scratched the side of his head. "Ehhh…sorta…he's a friend of Lilith's. I heard he was here during the Hyperion thing, even helped stop Handsome Jack." Zane recognized him in a flash, then.

"Salvador." The Operative concluded. "He looks…a bit more feral than Maya said he was."

"Well, he's been killing COV left and right ever since they sprouted up, so…yeah." A gunshot made Vaughn flinch.

Said gunshot was followed by screaming.

"¡Deja de gritar, perra!" Several more gunshots followed.

Zane was glad Salvador was on their side, all things considered. He was like an angry little chihuahua.

An angry little chihuahua with guns for days.

* * *

"So, Carnivora isn't a who, but a _where_?" Moze concluded. Vaughn had finished explaining what he knew and what he heard from the COV's radio chatter. He got off track a few times and, right when she was considering punching him, he finally spit out the important bits.

"Yep," The strangely ripped nerd said, currently seated on a concrete barrier. "It's a big festival of murder, carnage, and mayhem run by two murderstreamers named Pain and Terror. Drums up a LOT of attention for the COV. It's out in the Splinterlands."

"Any…more information?"

"It's a fuckin' riot if they don' know who you are!" Salvador chuckled, nearly spilling his beer. "I went there a few times and got into a fight with a cabrón over the price of some food. Next thing I knew they told me never to come back."

"…how do you get banned from a murder festival?" Amara asked, clearly concerned.

"Lotta ways. All of 'em fun."

"…moving…on. Splinterlands. Mark it on our ECHOs or something, and we'll see what we can do. Already this place doesn't sound easy to walk right into." Moze got up and headed for the Catch-A-Ride station, spawning up a decent Technical so they could all commute together. Once the jeep dropped down, she planted herself in the driver's seat, waiting for the others to climb in first before starting the ignition. "Um, Salvador, right? Did you wanna come with?" She was still weirded out by the man, but if he was a friend of Axton's from back in the day, he had to be alright.

"Eh…nah, can't." The short man finished his beer and simply chucked the bottle behind him. "Gotta watch for more cult fuckers. Til we get those turrets, we ain't defended." Moze nodded and, after silently making a mental note to fix that issue, drove off.

She quickly became a touch distracted when she noticed Amara was sitting next to her. Fucking _feelings_ were making things weird again…

"So, Vaughn," The Siren spoke into her ECHO. "Any information we need to know about Carnivora? Anything _useful_?"

"_Well…it's the most popular Calypso fan-stream in the galaxy, for one. Pain and Terror take kill requests non-stop in the twins' name…and higher viewer counts." _

"It still disturbs me they seek to commercialize death." FL4K grunted from the back of the Technical.

"_Yeah it's…not good. Anyways, yeah, it's marked, but getting in's gonna be a different story." _

"Define different stor—FUCK!" Moze swerved the Technical to avoid from mowing down a skag in the road. "Fucking SKAGS! Why the FUCK are they in the fucking roads?! Is there a sign for this shit?!"

"…um…" Zane pointed. Literally to her right was a sign that said 'skag crossing' in crude writing. "I forgot, ya hadn' spent a lotta time on Pandora. Expect, like, six more of those."

"…fucking…why?"

"Ain' just skags who cross the roads." Right on cue, something _else_ sauntered past. Something that looked like a giant bug. "Varkids do too."

"Ugh." This was gonna be a long ride.

* * *

Amara flipped through some stuff as Moze got them closer and closer to Carnivora. They recently crossed into the Splinterlands and, so far, the COV presence was at a disturbing low. Considering this 'festival', she assumed most were there, probably engaged in all sorts of debauchery.

Probably.

"_Um, Vault Hunters," _Tannis' voice resonated in her head. _"My imminent demise is whipping these cultists into a frenzy. They're delivering Eridium by the armful, screaming my name all the way…I had no idea I was so popular among the idiot masses. But, then again, I suppose you never know where flattery's going to come from." _

"Well save you. Don't worry about that." The Technical came to a stop. Amara could honestly say she wasn't ready to see a bigass psycho head staring at her. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was…a gate of some sort, with a maw filled with sharp teeth.

"_Hey, you made it to the Splinterlands! All right, so Carnivora should still be nearby."_

"Wait, _should_?"

"_Oh, right. It moves around Pandora, setting up wherever there's enough crazies to fill the bleachers. They've been camped out there a while, so I guess the sacrifice business must be a boomin', right?"_

"Shame we gotta put a stop to that shite." Zane sarcastically said as he disembarked the Technical himself. "…why the fuck do they got a psycho's ugly mug as the gate? Fuckin' hate lookin' at these shite-kickers."

"Let's ignore the mug for now, Zane, and figure how we're getting inside." Amara noted.

"_Oh, heads up, Carnivora is SUPS exclusive. Only the most dedicated followers get in, so you're gonna have to give up your car as an offering." _Amara looked to see FL4K had already, quite literally, pushed the Technical onto the 'metal tongue'. When said tongue started to move, Amara realized it was simply a conveyor belt…one that dragged the Technical into twin, spiraling blades that reduced the Technical into flaming metal and shattered parts.

"…I take it that's not a good sign." Moze muttered.

"_That was a PITIFUL DEATH RIDE_," A voice shouted from loudspeakers. _"No ticket, no GLORY!" _

Amara scowled. "So, we need to find something better. Vaughn, anything?"

"_Nah, nothing comes to mi—WAIT SOMETHING DOES! I heard Big Donny, over at the Chop Shop, won a golden car in a sweepstakes; go steal that!" _

"…who comes up with these names?"

"It's Pandora, Mara Mar," Zane was already walking off to, no doubt, drum up another ride or steal one from a bandit. "Ya can call yarself anythin' ya want, so long as people're screamin' it when ya kill 'em."

"That's morbid."

"Well, it's true. Me brother knew a guy named Nine-Toes back in the day. Apparently, he also had three balls."

"…gross."

* * *

FL4K was honestly disappointed 'Big Donny' was a pushover. Retrieving and stealing the car was easier than they anticipated, and they were the first to disembark the 'golden chariot' once it was on the conveyor belt tongue, with the others following suit.

"Y'know, I'm sorta pissed we gotta give this ride up." Zane muttered, shaking his head. "Damn fine ride. Could really see meself crusin' 'bout, blowin' shite up in it—"

"_Submit your death ri—OH SHIT THAT'S A SWEET ASS CAR. Slap that bitch on my tongue!" _The loudspeaker cut him off. He scowled.

Moze mashed the button and the belt started, though instead of turning the Technical into scrap metal and rubble, the blades instead retracted and allowed it to safely pass through, though it was sucked upwards once far enough in the 'head'.

"_You have been CHOSEN! Enjoy Carnivora!" _

"Surprising they haven't realized who we are, yet." Amara was already passing through the gate, with everyone else in tow.

"Maybe they're just that stupid."

"Or maybe they're that confident we can't get in." FL4K concluded for Moze. "Given how they treated this Carnivora, it makes sense they figured it would be impossible for us to gain entry. And yet…"

"Well, let's hit 'em where it hurts, save Tannis, and blow this fuckin' place to bits."

And, with that, they passed through to Carnivora.

* * *

[Some of you may have been surprised I didn't upload yesterday. That was both for a valid reason, and for a bamboozle.

Due to a serious project being concluded, my Friday's are now open. So I figured it'd be good to move the story to being updated every Friday as a good sendoff for the weekend for my readers. Plus, yesterday, I was helping my brother, or at least making an attempt. I was considering doing another update Thursday to explain why I couldn't update and, instead, just kicked myself in gear and pulled this plan out.

So, really, expect updates every Friday from now on.

Won't do reviews today, mostly 'cause today was both giving the prelude to Carnivora and, also, giving an update.

Til then, stay safe. I'll see you all next Friday.

Also, it was hard reintroducing Sal. Sorta forgot how he talked and if he mixed Spanish with English.]


	46. Carnivora Carnage Part 1

Zane was…honestly unprepared for how Carnivora looked.

Him and the others had just gotten past the gates and, at last, were within the "festival of murder".

Sure, for the most part it had the same, ragged theme as many buildings on Pandora but, also, he could see some other things: concession stands, some photo-booths, and even a fucking _Ferris wheel_ in the distance!

It made Zane wonder where all this shite was when he was a kid; he fucking loved Ferris Wheels!

"_Vault Hunter, Carnivora just started broadcasting across the ECHONet," _Lilith said into his earpiece. _"The sacrifice is about to begin; don't let anything get between you and Tannis!"_

"Nothin' will." They advanced forwards, Zane being the first to hear someone broadcasting on the place's PA system, saying something about 'the Agonizer 9000'…certainly sounded problematic. And no doubt something to address later.

"THE HERETICS ARE HERE—" A bandit's head exploded into gore. Zane turned to see FL4K had, curtly, blown someone's head into bits before they could raise a weapon. Of course, it led to the place going from a jovial festival into a warzone; bullets flew everywhere, and grenades exploded about. Zane took cover behind a barrier, dropping down his Barrier and using it to return fire, popping a few heads and dropping some bandits along with the others.

"Well, shite, this ain' good." He muttered. "These fuckers're gonna keep us from Tannis. Y'all got a way to clear a path?"

"One." Amara grunted. The Siren leapt over her cover and slammed her fist into the ground, Phaseslamming an explosive barrel and sending it flying at the crowd of attackers, blowing them into bloody bits. "Let's move while they regroup!"

"Gotcha, one sec though." Zane walked over to the, now, abandoned concession stand, rummaging behind it to grab a beer before moving. Sure, it'd probably taste like ass, but what kinda man would he be if he didn't blow bandits to bits with a cold one in hand?

"By the way, Vaughn," Moze asked, sticking close and keeping her AR aloft. "Who's that jackass talking on the loudspeaker?"

"_That'd be Pain. Like I said, him and Terror run the carnival, and are directly in charge of the sacrifices. They 'hype' the crowd up and whatnot…but still, it's weird." _

"Death does not need a 'hype man'," FL4K growled. "I will send them to meet her, personally."

"That's the spirit, bud!" They passed across a series of metal bridges, and a quick look over the edge told Zane a fall would _definitely_ be fatal, for both them and the cultists.

That was why, when some of said cultists posted themselves on the other side of the bridge, Zane rolled a grenade across, letting it explode and send them screaming into the abyss.

"…eh…that felt less thrillin' than I thought it'd be." Zane muttered. At the rate they were at now, it wouldn't take long for them to reach Tannis, who no doubt was in the center of this weird place.

Hopefully, they had time to save her and ride the Ferris Wheel. Because why not, right?

* * *

Moze bashed a bandit's head in with her assault rifle, screaming profanities until the fucker stopped moving. "Augh…fuck…why'd I have to run outta ammo here?"

"Cause ya probably forgot to see Marcus and grab some extra ammo," Zane walked past her, reloading his handgun and heading for the lift they found. "happens to all've us at some point. Even someone as skilled as ya."

"Go to hell."

"We're IN hell, Mozzy Moze…well…some would call Pandora hell. But, either way, ya HAVE been lootin' from their bodies, right?"

"I mean, yeah." She honestly didn't; even if they were crazy cult fuckers, it always felt weird just rummaging through their pockets for some ammo, and when she DID try to loot, they had ammo for a gun she wasn't using.

"Well," Zane kicked a dead cultist ahead of her. "Check him. Saw him usin' an SMG."

"Eh…not…a fan of those things."

"Why not? They ain' bad. Sure, they lack the punch of an assault rifle, but y'know what they do got?"

"And what's that?" Moze expected a crude remark or a joke.

"Handling and accuracy," He concluded, finishing off the beer he…stole from somewhere and tossing it over his shoulder. "SMG's ain't got much punch but they're a fuck-ton easier to manage and, thus, ya ain' missin' shots as often. Didn' FL4K talk to ya 'bout this."

"Probably." Moze was still in disbelief Zane was giving actual, good advice. "Fuck…I guess I'll try one."

"Good. Now hurry up. I think Tannis is tryin' to stall the fuckers. It ain' working." Zane moved on and Moze reached down to pick up the SMG Zane mentioned. It was…well for lack of better words, a piece of shit. Rugged, old, and damaged; the only thing it had going was a bayonet attached to the front, so at the very least, she could shank someone with it.

The Gunner joined her team on the elevator and rode it down, soon finding herself in a large, open cave, with the same, rugged buildings scattered about. It looked like a crude residential area, and already she could see bandits rushing forward, armed and ready.

So, the Gunner raised the SMG and open fired, feeling her arm jerk significantly less and for one of her rounds to soar right through a cultist's chest, sending her to the ground.

"Huh…SMG's aren't all bad." She kept shooting, shifting to cover with the others. Gunfire erupted all around as, once again, they were forced on the defensive, fighting off the waves of COV fuckers.

However, amid the firefight, Moze heard what 'Pain' was saying, or rather, she heard him mention something about Eridium. Vaughn did mention something about them bringing it here but, maybe, they could do something with that, after they saved Tannis, of course.

Maybe they could rig it to explode or something. Anything to deny the COV an advantage, especially when the fucking twins were getting stronger each moment.

* * *

Amara loaded another slug into her shotgun and advanced with the others, stepping over another dead body. They were nearing Carnivora's center at last, where they could rescue Tannis and make some headway in breaking the twins.

"_Folks, we arrive to our GRAND Sacrifice! The heretic Scientist and—" _

The intercom cut out. Amara stepped onto a lift, a brow raised, as now nothing but radio static sounded through the speakers.

"_Huh, Vault Hunters, whatever you're doing down there, it's working. The stream just cut out."_

"That…isn't us, Lilith. Someone else did that." The lift stopped and Amara stepped off. Ahead of them was another set of gates and, atop them, was a skull with flaming pipes by it. Beyond said gate was a massive, gaudy contraption, one that gave her a sense of worry mixed with concern.

"Oh, so this entire time we weren' in Carnivora." Zane muttered nearby.

"What?" Moze growled. "The fuck's that mean?"

"All've that was just the outskirts. The small-time shite. But THIS is the real-deal…this is where we gotta be."

"Then let's take them down and—" The ground rumbled. Amara turned just in time to watch…well plain and simple, watch Carnivora _drive away_.

"…it moves?" The Siren huffed. "That's…new."

"It's fucking BULLSHIT." Moze sighed. "Lilith, the festival's driving away. Any ideas?"

"I got one." Amara turned to see the Operative standing next to…well the gold Technical they stole earlier, still in pristine and working condition. The old man was already in the driver's seat, cranking the engine on and letting the vehicle roar to life. "We're gonna run that bitch down. Everyone, climb in and get ready. This'll be fun." Amara climbed into the gunner's seat as Moze and FL4K deposited themselves in the back. Zane floored it and the Technical zoomed after the, now, fleeing Carnivora, gaining speed and advancing on it.

"Mara Mar, you know how to fire that thing, right?"

"Naturally, why?"

"Blow up the fuel lines. We take 'em down, we'll slow this fucker down." Amara nodded and adjusted the barrel catapult. Once she had her target she let it fly, watching the barrel smash into the fuel line and violently explode, resulting in a hole being ripped in the side of the metal canister.

Her shields flickered. "Damnit, we're being fired at!" She saw a few Cyclones drop from the underside of Carnivora, speeding towards them and open firing.

"We got these fuckers, you worry about the fuel lines!" Moze called before returning fire, sending one of the Cyclones smashing into another. With the threat being handled, Amara returned her focus to the fuel lines, smashing more explosive barrels into them and crippling them too. A Cyclone rolled past, guns raised to shoot at her, but it was blown to bits, courtesy of a well-placed shot from FL4K.

"_Typical Vault Thief behavior…if you can't win, drag 'em down with you. I see how it is."_

Pain was already getting annoying. Zane sped the Technical up just as more Cyclones dropped down, all being dealt with in a matter of moments, now that Amara's focus wasn't sorely on the fuel lines.

"Now, hammer that fuckin' transmission. They lose that, they go nowhere." Amara nodded and, curtly, fired a slew of barrels at it when Zane got close enough, resulting in the massive behemoth of a carnival coming to an abrupt stop.

"Alright, good work everyone." Amara climbed out the Technical, eyeing a pipe that'd fallen once the massive vehicle came to a halt. "Now, let's go save Tannis."

* * *

[A bit jankier with this one. I didn't remember until, while writing, that Carnivora has an interior too. So, it feels fitting for that to be its own chapter, especially because that's where the climactic boss fight is. Not a perfect plan, but I've never been one for perfectly planning things, after all.

So, reviews.

For TAG AND BINK: I didn't have Moze run the skag down 'cause I figured she wouldn't know that's normal. As I recall, they were only on Pandora for less than a day before going up to Sanctuary, so really, Zane's the only one aware of Pandora's customs and taboos, so to speak.

For T0KY0 D4RK: The Great Vault will definitely be where I'll have to include everyone in a massive, heroic assault. May mean it'll get broken into a few chapters but that tends to happen.

Stay tuned, people. We'll see if I can save the later stages of BL3's plot. Here's hoping.]


	47. Carnivora Carnage Part 2

The interior of Carnivora was about as rugged and weird as the rest of the place.

The Operative and his mates stepped past the entryway and looked about the rugged place. Mashing a finger to his earpiece, he heard Pain going off on his associates, griping and complaining about how things weren't working. Thankfully, they had some more time, but considering he contacted the engineers, not long.

They soon reached another "residential" area of Carnivora and, like last time, there were cultists everywhere. Cultists who open fired the second they had eyes on them. Zane dropped his barrier down and casually returned fire, making sure to stick each of them with the explosive rounds to ensure they didn't have an easy time shooting.

"_Vault Hunters, I think we're running out of time!" _Tannis said.

"We're comin', Tannis, just…try to buy more time. Ask him 'bout his hat or some shite." An explosion nearby told him Amara had just fired her rocket launcher. The cultists were cleared out and the way forward was accessible. "Let's push up. Seems like we got a lull in their forces, I guess."

"Mhm. Still weird to see homes and such so deep within a place like this." Amara mused. "Like…who even are these people?"

"Probably techs and engineers. Considerin' how much work needs to be done for this place, it'd make sense for it to have its crew and staff always within arms reach." Zane answered. "Also helps 'em that said staff's as batshit insane as every other COV, and not against workin' 'round dangerous places."

"Explains why we keep finding bandits in weird ass spots." Moze grunted.

"Oh, that's normal. Bandits'll set up shop wherever they think they can stay alive and loot other bandits. That's why me brother set himself up in the fuckin' arctic. Ain' no one goin' out there, thus he never had to worry 'bout gettin' attacked. And he had a boat set up so him and his boys could go raidin'."

"That's…huh." Moze paused. "…fuck, that's not a dumbass idea."

"Yep. But, y'know, brother got off'd. Ain' shocked, nor surprised. The takeaway from this is bandits're a hardy bunch." Zane turned and curtly shot a charging tink in the face. "Not these fuckers. Their devotion's made 'em senile. More than they usually are."

"And as unpredictable as a rabid beast is, it's still easily felled." FL4K added.

The group continued to move. Zane switched his pistol for his Maliwan SMG, making sure the laser-esque gun was set to fire.

"_So very close, my spotlight-hogging Vault Thieves," _Pain. Of course. _"but you can't pull our plug that easily. We're going to sacrifice, one way or another!"_

Zane scowled. "Alright, let's hustle. Seems like they're gonna do shite the hard way."

He hoped Tannis bought herself enough time; he heard 'the hard way' enough times to know that usually meant a slow, primitive death.

Or a loaded gun.

* * *

"Fuck!" Moze nearly hit the ground after riding the weird air lift. The Gunner caught herself just barely and checked herself quickly to make sure nothing was left behind. Thankfully, everything was in place, though she was suspiciously missing a grenade…hopefully the pin didn't get pulled.

With that done, she turned her attention to the new room, one occupied by an assortment of spinning cogs and gears. The place had to be the gutworks of Carnivora; where all the complex machinery was housed and, also, where they were in pretty big danger of being crushed or mulched by a stray gear.

And here she thought her time with Vladof wouldn't pay off…well…no more than it did already.

Moze shouldered her SMG and followed with the others, raising it to fire a quick burst of bullets at a cultist who charged down the narrow hallway.

"_Incompetent sweat weasels! Every minute we aren't killing people, we lose half a million subscribers!" _Pain was losing his shit. Moze could care less. Considering he stood between them and rescuing Tannis, the more suffering he went through the better things were for them. _"Huh? What's that, Terror…? Oh, good idea. Ahem, until we get the Agonizer 9000 working, we're…going to broadcast the Vault Thieves as they murder our crew! How's THAT for entertainment, huh?!"_

"…has he lost his shot?" Moze asked, just in time for a cultist to get his face blown apart from FL4K's sniper. "How sadistic can these fuckwits be? I mean, they're just…letting us do this, apparently."

"Yeah, even for Pandora's standards, this is pretty fuckin' dumb." Zane chucked a zealot into the grinding gears below, resulting in a messy spray of blood and entrails landing on the catwalk they jogged across.

"Desperation does a lot. I believe I fought a man who tried using a toddler as a meat shield once," Amara sighed. "It worked poorly. I'm quite dexterous with my fists."

"Didja kill the bastard?" Zane's tone went dark.

"Of course; why wouldn't I?"

"Good. Lotta things that get under me skin; usin' kids like that is one've 'em."

"See, that I can agree on, old man." Moze said. At times, she forgot Zane basically went berserk if kids got hurt or worse. It was a nice redeeming quality, and, as said, something they could both agree on.

The team continued across the various stairwells and catwalks in the gutworks. More of Carnivora's crew tried to ambush and attack them but, like all the others, either met their end from a bullet or met their end from the grinding gears below. The Gunner did find it a bit twisted, but considering everything, those thoughts lasted al for six seconds.

"_Huh, Vault Thieves, good news; apparently, our subscribers are LOVING YOU! Now, we may have some…um…creative differences and 'insurmountable philosophical disagreements' but, if there's one thing I can recognize, it's a group of certified killing machines!" _

"Is he…is this fucker being serious?" Moze asked, completely baffled. She understood Pandora even less now.

What's next? That's it's custom to actually mow down skags? That'd be fucking nuts.

* * *

They were no doubt nearing Tannis' holding place. Amara racked her shotgun and threw a bandit off the edge of the catwalk, sending the hapless fool plummeting to their demise miles below. Considering how long it took the bandit to hit the ground, they were VERY high up.

"C'mon, we ain' got much time. Sounds like they almost got shite workin'." Zane called. They pushed on, mowing through swarms of cultists like a mower through a badly kept yard. Amara alternated between blowing bandits apart with her shotgun or smashing them with her Phaseslam, doing her best to maintain her stamina and prevent from a lapse in her abilities.

They, soon, piled into an elevator. One that would, no doubt, take them up to where they needed to be.

"_Hey, hey, hey! This is a professional gig, Vault Thieves! Your moment! If we're gonna get you in the ring, you're gonna need some entrance music. Pick one!" _

"Is…anyone else surprised how this fucker's rooting for us now?" Moze grumbled. Amara glanced to the buttons and saw…well little indication on which was which: one was a flaming skull, one was an open mouth, and the last…well she supposed a volume mixer, so that had to be EDM.

…she wasn't a fan of EDM.

FL4K mashed one of the buttons at seemingly random and ominous metal filled the air, accompanied by a sinister piano. It was definitely not her cup of tea but, considering the circumstances, she pushed those thoughts to the side and got ready. The elevator ascended and soon came to a stop; ahead of them was a drop that, if all their other fights were right, led to where a foe was.

So, with that, Amara was the first to step forward and drop down into a metal lined arena. All around it were screaming cultists, cheering and raving, and in the center, next to a massive hole, was Tannis, strung up on some sort of insidious contraption.

"Welcome…to the greatest show on Pandora!" And, next to her, were the two she needed to kill; Pain and Terror. The contraption suspending Tannis suddenly receded upwards and the two cultists leapt onto something that ascended from the hole…something demented looking.

The thing staring at them looked like a giant, mechanized cultist, sporting a demented visage, and an assortment of weapons and tools on it. Given all the clues she had, Amara assumed _that_ was the Agonizer 9000.

Hopefully it lived up to its name.

"_See, Vault Thieves,_" Pain's voice resonated from the animatronic monstrosity. _"THIS is how you make an entrance!" _

"Oh shite…this'll be fun." Zane said, reloading his SMG.

"_Viewers! Comment in the stream on how you want the Vault Thieves to die; we got mods standing by!" _The robotic thing grabbed a demented, spike lined weapon from its shoulder and slammed it into the ground, nearly crushing Moze who, thankfully, flung herself out the way. In a flash, they all open fired at the damned thing, shooting wherever and anywhere they could.

"Watch the floor!" Amara looked down to see the floor beneath her glowing red hot. She threw herself to the side just as flames erupted from where she once was, telling her how much control the cult had over the environment…and how dangerous things were.

"Oi!" Zane shouted. "Aim for the red panels!" He fired at one to prove his point and the resulting explosion made the robot flinch. The team continued to open fire, Amara centering her shots on those weak points while, also, remembering to shoot any cultists who got bolt enough to jump into the ring.

"_Aaaaaaand by popular demand, it's the MEGA BLENDER!" _The thing's head lowered down and a lengthy, twitching blade extended from its maw. The Agonizer's head swept around, turning any unfortunate bandits into giblets just as Zane slid under the demented weapon, as did FL4K.

Moze, however, was distracted, trying to reload her weapon and pelt a fleeing cultist.

"Moze!" The Siren threw herself forward and tackled the Gunner to the floor just as the blade passed overhead. The Gunner, for a moment, flailed and swore, though that ended in a flash. "You good?"

"Y-Y-Yeah. Just…a bit winded." She had a massive blush on her face. Amara knew damn well what it was but, considering what was unfolding, she didn't have time to comment on it.

"C'mon, on your feet, then." Amara got up and offered a hand to Moze; the Gunner quickly accepted it and got to her feet, still blushing the entire time.

"Oi, hate to be that guy, but we got a bastard to waste!" Zane called. A pair of sawblades whirled past and the moment was dashed. As quickly as she stopped, Amara resumed shooting, though she slowed down when the thing…receded into the floor.

"_Alright, don't panic, folks. Taking a quick commercial break. Our sponsor today's…um…about this mobile fantasy game—Terror I thought I said we weren't accepting deals from those guys…yeah, I know it pays good but I fucking hate that game…augh…fuck it, I'll call 'em and say we aren't doing it." _

Amara was confused, but she used the opportunity to reload her weapons and gather her senses.

"_Breaks over. Terror, hit every button!" _Well, there it was. The Agonizer attacked with a flurry of attacks, including the 'mega blender' as they called it. This time, all four of them slid under it without any issues, and Amara managed to blast the damn things jaw off with a well-placed rocket. The robot was nearly done, and when it slammed its blade into the ground again, this time, she Phaseslammed it, trapping it there and allowing Zane to open fire at the joint, severing the arm.

"_Ah, damnit! Don't unsubscribe, people! We can still salvage this stream!"_ Pain shouted. Soon, the Agonizer rattled and vibrated before its other arm exploded off, and the thing was nearly done. _"Alright, we got ONE last trick up our sleeve. The thing to fix it all!"_

Amara saw something glowing on it. A violet colored core in the thing's center.

"_Vault Hunters…destroy that core. Trust me." _Amara open fired at it, as did the others, just as a beam erupted from it, one that nearly struck FL4K and cleaved a literal hole in the floor. But, thankfully, the core was destroyed in a matter of moments, showering the floor in Eridium…

…Eridium that began to float up, and towards Tannis.

"Wha—" She didn't even get time to reach before the scientist seemed to…absorb it, resulting in a blinding light engulfing the room. When it cleared, Tannis was floating…no…she was _hovering_, with a set of angelic, ghostly wings.

"No fuckin' way. Ya gotta be shitin' me. She's a fuckin' SIREN?"

Well…that was something.

* * *

"So…I understand that you may have a few…questions." Tannis stood nearby the hole in the ground where, moments ago, the Agonizer was. FL4K finished ripping their blade from Pain's body, hefting his severed head up and shaking the excess blood from it.

"You are a Siren? How, and why?"

"Well, it's a long story; it's also how I've been speaking in your head and charging the Vault Keys."

"Huh, always wondered how that was bein' done." Zane mused.

"Indeed. As for my particular powers, I am able to manipulate machines and anything else with a current. As far as I recall, it's called 'phaseshifting'; considering my trade, you could call it a gift from a guardian angel."

"Outta curiosity…would that work on tinman here?" Zane asked curiously.

"For her sake, I hope she would not attempt."

"Well, I _would_, but it won't. Technically, you have a conscious mind. If I were to try phaseshifting you, you may just lose control of a limb or two. But we're getting off topic. I had intended to keep this secret but…best laid plans, robotic murder machines. You were there, of course. Regardless, I'll return to Sanctuary…and thank you, really. I don't say that enough." And, with that, she just…phased away.

"So, science girl's a siren, the twins' stream got ruined, and the Agonizer's down…huh." Moze huffed. "How're we getting home?"

"I will contact Axton, but what of Carnivora? Should we leave it running, even with its heads removed?" FL4K asked.

"Eh…I'll set it to drive into the volcanic region on Pandora. I'm sure no one'll mind it violently exploding out there. Y'all…do whatever." The Operative walked off and FL4K set themselves to work on skinning Pain's head. They had finally hit the twins deep and denied them a major supply of Eridium. There remained the risk of the twins simply taking someone else, but with Carnivora devoid of its leaders and soon to be…well cast into a molten grave, it would accomplish nothing except provide an ample chance for the Beastmaster to strike.

Besides, the curtains were drawing to a close. The twins would soon make a great mistake and, when it came, they would strike.

And then the glorious hunt would come to a close.

* * *

[And Carnivora's done. Took a while to do, but now it's done. We're drawing upon the exodus for this story. So, that's a good thing. It's been a wild ride, so I'm glad you all've stuck with me amid it. I do plan to use next chapter for a non-canon, comical one, so you've been warned.

Now, reviews.

To SHADOW WARRIOR 3: I do feel like Borderlands 3 peaked in gameplay aspects, but dropped the ball when it came to story. It tends to happen; they might've thought people wouldn't give two shits about the story when, really, they forgot many craved a good story with their stellar gameplay. So, hopefully, they can remedy that in future expansions. I do wish they take a page from Vermintide's book and allow for the Vault Hunters to banter with one another, but, like I said, DLCs could fix that.

To TAG AND BINK: It's exactly that, yes; we as the players know to mow shit down but the chars themselves? Unlikely, unless they spent time on Pandora. Even in Borderlands 2 this was unlikely, as only two of them were actively native to the planet, while the rest were there only through circumstances. And, for the Great Vault, we'll see.

To Le055Li0n: It'd make sense for each hunter to have a preferred gun, like in the first game each char did better with a specific gun.

Thanks for the continued support. Let's end this on a high note.


	48. A Bad Day (Non Canon)

_**Less than an hour ago…**_

Earl was having a good time.

The bandit walked through the gates of Carnivora, holding a beer in hand and a pistol in the other. It was a bright and sunny day and he was ready to have some FUN in Carnivora! Sure, he had to give up his car, which his brother labored away for weeks to build into a death machine but…y'know…in the name of the Twin Gods, right? He wouldn't mind.

Cletus was dead anyhow. Fuck that guy.

"Welcome brother," A psycho cried nearby. "Welcome to CARNIVORA! Have fun, and don't die!"

"Don't plan to." Earl chugged his beer and tossed it to the side. "Let's have some fun! Imma hit the concession stand!" The bandit triumphantly walked over to one of the many stands, tapping his hand against the counter. "Whaddya got?"

"Skag Dogs."

Earl grimaced. "Ew…you got anything that won't taste like rancid shit?"

"Fuck no and fuck you."

Earl wasted no time and shot the guy in the face. Fuck him anyways.

With that done, he kept walking, heading for another stand. "Huh, what's this?"

"Tickets to the Great Sacrifice! They're gonna slaughter that scientist girl with the Agonizer 9000, but first, a lotta other sacrifices as appetizers."

"Oh shit? Sign me the fuck up."

"Great! That'll be five hundred dollars."

Earl's jaw nearly dropped. "F-Five hundred? The fuck?!"

"Yeah. All the funds go towards the Twin Gods and delivering righteous fury upon our enemies, like those DAMN Vault Thieves. Some Eridium would also do but, considering you aren't glowing like a fucking coked up Christmas Tree, you probably don't have any."

Earl grumbled. He only brought five-twenty for the carnival, but then again, he needed to see the sacrifices. Hrrmm…maybe—

"Don't think about shooting me." The bandit running the ticket stand had a shotgun aimed at his stomach. Earl sighed and forked over the five hundred bucks, accepting the marked ticket once it was handed to him. "Thank you. Show's in an hour."

"Fine fine." Earl grumbled. At least he'd get to see the Grand Sacrifice or whatever the fuck it was called. That'd be pretty cool.

So, that meant he had an hour to kill. What to do?

"Beast Battles! Bet on a beast, watch it battle another!" Another bandit cried from his own stand. "If it wins, you keep the pot! Bets are a five-dollar minimum!"

Well _that_ was something.

* * *

Earl's good day had gone to questionable.

Four fights. The creature he bet on didn't win once. First he bet on the skag, which got eaten by the stalker. Then he bet on the stalker, which lost to ANOTHER skag. Then he bet on the spiderant, only for it to SOMEHOW lose to the fucking same skag, and when he bet on that skag, it proceeded to lose to a stalker AGAIN!

Shit was probably rigged; he could've just shot the guy who ran the ring but he had a rocket launcher and, well…Earl didn't wanna end up as chunks on the ground.

So, the downtrodden bandit trekked through the festival's pathways, en route for the main area of Carnivora, where the sacrifices were to occur. At the very least, he could catch the sacrifices, and end things with a bang.

Earl pulled up to the gates and readied his ticket and—

"Fuck!" He dropped it, and it fell in a puddle of beer. Earl watched in utter horror as the ink bled away and the ticket was rendered utterly useless; just a mushy, lump of paper. Still, Earl scooped it up and approached the gate, offering it to the cultist standing there.

"…bud, this ain't gonna work. Go back and buy another ticket."

"I…augh…" He sighed and went the way he came, quickly making his way for the entryway.

Carnivora was a bust, and…well he didn't accomplish everything he set out to do. So, that was a shame. Maybe next year he could catch it, but he wasn't sure if he'd have a sick ride by then. Sure, he could steal one, but the only one he knew with such a sick ass ride was that one fucker with the gold technical. Forgot his name.

Even with his slow walk, it took Earl little time to pass through the gates and leave the festival, a mournful sigh leaving him. Well, at the very least, it couldn't get worse—

"THE VAULT THIEVES ARE HERE!" He turned in time to hear a series of gunshots and explosions ring out. It quickly dawned on him that, had he taken a few more fucking seconds, he'd have been right in their fucking crosshairs…maybe the day was looking up after all.

Fuck, maybe this was a sign. A sign that he should finally get off his ass and fix his fucking life! Finally stop being a bandit and make something of himself!

"…Imma go enroll in that fuckin' college on Eden-5. Be a fuckin' professor like my pa dreamed of."

And, with that, Earl triumphantly walked off. Things were looking up!

…well…for him. Not for the others. They were all dead.

* * *

[I forgot where I was going with this chapter but opted to commit to…whatever it was. I'll make a note to not deviate from the canon too much. Gets confusing. Next week will be your regularly scheduled mayhem. Wanted to try something different, and I'm not really sure I hit the nail on the head.

But, on to the reviews.

To BORD3RLANDS: I'm glad I've been able to deliver such quality. Honestly, sometimes, I feel my quality is subpar, namely with a few middle chapters. So, glad people are liking it regardless.

To Soft Serve: I had to make a RAID joke somewhere; y'know, the FUN AND INTENSE RPG that's got an auto-play function. So, yeah, that says all I need to say.

To TAG AND BINK: I'll see what I can do regarding the climax of this story. There's a lot I can do but I need to pick the thing that works solidly. The one that leaves readers truly satisfied.

To Sweet Tooth: I thought the scene was pretty neat. Really covers the zaniness of the game. And I'll see about incorporating the Circle of Slaughter. Maybe as another side chapter. I can sneak character development in there somewhere, after all.

Thanks for reading, and as you all can tell, we're nearing the apex of things. So, stay tuned; let's hope we can end this on a high note.


	49. Reflecting

"…in hindsight, this probably could've been done better." Zane stood on a cliffside with the others, watching…well his work. They were _far_ from Roland's Rest, all the way out in Pandora's volcanic region. And, far below them was Carnivora, currently sinking in a massive lake of lava, accompanied with explosions and distant screams of either the engineers who didn't get out in time or the cultists still dead-set on "going down with the ultimate festival" so to speak.

Zane winced when another explosion sounded, showering the ground with bits of metal and…what he figured to be body parts. Ew. "Maybe I could've just sent this shite out to the tundra. Let it just sit there and not make the volcanic region even worse."

"Eh, I'm sure it'll be fine." Amara shrugged. "More importantly, I want to hear how badly this fucked over the COV. Vaughn, anything?"

_"Ooooooh there's a lot! COMS are on fire right now; seems the twins are REALLY pissed about what happened. Sure, they got a decent haul of Eridium, but Tannis is alive, and they lost out on a lot more."_

"Wait, there was Eridium in there—" Moze's question was answered by a purple tinted explosion. "…should…we be concerned?"

"Unlikely." FL4K answered. "The odds of anything being exposed to such a terrible introduction of Eridium are slim to none, anything that DOES get exposed would either perish, or gain massive power, only to die in the lava. We should be fine."

"Ooookay…anyways, Axton's on his way. What now?"

"Now we wait." Zane cracked open a bottle of beer. "Y'all want one? I stole, like, three cases of this shite amid the escape."

"No, but what now?" Amara crossed her arms, gaze still on the smoldering remains of the twins' greatest work. "We saved Tannis, but now what? We wait for the twins to try grabbing someone else?"

"We do what any hunter does, Amara," FL4K answered again. "We go for the kill. With this massive setback, it's inevitable the twins will do something risky and foolhardy, revealing their location in the process. And, when that happens, we go to where they are, and we put an end to them, once and for all."

"And after that?" Moze asked next.

"We do what we said," Zane chugged his beer, tossing the empty bottle off the cliff. "We stick together and we keep fightin'. COV ain' gonna disappear overnight; we off the twins, they're gonna go back to use bandit tactics."

"And those are?"

"Fight among themselves. Given how fuckin' fanatical these fuckers are, they're gonna form groups within their group and attack anyone who doesn't' share their view. It's why there's never been peace on Pandora; when two fuckers disagree, someone shoots the other."

"You sound remorseful, Zane." Amara inquired.

"What? Nah, that's just the way it is. Ain' no rest for the wicked 'n all that shite." Another swig. "But, yeah FL4K's right, this'll be over soon. And when it is, we'll keep goin' til the COV's gone."

"And then what?"

Zane paused at that, slowly opening another bottle. "Dunno. We'll figure that part out when we get there. Cross that bridge when we get there."

"Sometimes, that is the best mentality," FL4K agreed. "Fretting over problems yet to come leads to overlooking current issues."

"See, tinman gets it. So, let's just chill and wait for Axton…though I may wanna hit the Handsome Jackpot at some point."

"The…what?" Moze questioned.

"Eh, this fuckin' casino built by that fucker, Jack. I DID hear some bad things 'bout it but I'm pretty smart with me money."

"Smart?" Moze scoffed. "You spent four hundred dollars on that weird statue for your room!"

"Ammo costs more than that, yet I don' hear ya complainin' 'bout that."

"I do, you just fucking ignore it." Zane chuckled and resumed drinking.

They were gonna make things work. And then they were gonna drop the COV for good.

* * *

[So, 'nother non-canon one, but this is another reflection chapter. Trying to make a habit of having these after significant events. Give the cast time to breathe. I'm also glad people liked that previous chapter with the bandit; might mean I could try that again down the line, perhaps for the DLC chapters. So, on to the reviews.

To Handsome Jackass: I could perhaps do that; having flashbacks of them doing fun side ops. Only reason I didn't incorporate it was because, as said in the past, I haven't played the game myself for quite some time, and base the chapters on a playthrough, which doesn't involve the side ops. I'll have to see.

To Unkempt Harold: I'll have to see about how to incorporate the new DLC. At the very least, should be interesting to do.

We're nearing an end, people, but not _the end_.


	50. Assault on the Stronghold Part 1

"So, Lil, we got Tannis back, twins are right pissed off, and I got meself some more sliders." Zane munched on one of said, little burgers, passing the plate to Ava as he brushed his hands off on his coat. "What's next?"

"I still can't believe _Tannis_ is a Siren, too…" Ava mumbled.

"Eh, makes sense when ya think 'bout it. Also doesn'. The point is don' think 'bout it."

"It's not over yet, I can tell you that." Lilith said. "But, thanks, all of you, for rescuing Tannis. I…wanted to tell you all, but these days, being a Siren puts a target on your back."

"And in many more places, but do go on." FL4K added in that usual, creepy tone.

"…right."

"We should deal with the matter at hand, though, while we have a chance," Tannis chimed in, still as weird as always. "Though the Vault Hunters cut off the Calypsos pledge drive, they have already collected _massive_ amounts of Eridium. They are, no doubt, preparing it for use for something. Most likely to open the Great Vault."

"Wait wait wait," Moze shook her head. "That shit's actually _real_? Thought it was bullshit this entire time."

"I second that." Ava tacked on.

"I-I'm merely addressing the evidence we have at hand," Tannis stammered. "But, Lilith, if the Great Vault IS real then there must be a creature of incredible power within. Potentially dwarfing the power of every other Vault creature we've encountered."

Ava grumbled at that. "Those fuckers are already monsters; I don't wanna see what happens if they steal that sorta power."

"Well, lucky for ya, the odds of ya facin' em's slim, kid." Zane pat Ava's head, much to her chagrin. "Though I do agree; really ain' lookin' forward to those fuckers gettin' power like that."

"Mhm. When I was taken, they held me in a stronghold where they were amassing all of their offerings; whatever their plan entails, it will unfold there."

"Then that's where we strike. Vault Hunters, head back to Roland's Rest and tell Vaughn to rally the raiders. We're ending this."

"Gotcha. Though I ain' lookin' forward to that fucker sayin'—"

"Blood feud!" Zane winced and glanced towards Moze. "…what? Feels like a funny time to say it, plus now I know it bothers you." She grinned cheekily.

"Want me to break the short jokes back out?"

"Dunno, wanna be limping to the hangar?"

Zane smirked. Now she was finally clapping back with her own jabs. Least she finally pulled that stick outta her rear.

"Let's avoid from breakin' me legs, least 'til after I break 'em off in Troy's ass. Mara mar, Tinman, let's check in with Marcus, then head out. Wanna see if he's got something fiery."

"Mhm, but…well…this is it." Amara huffed. "We're about to get those fuckers at last."

"Yep. Feels good, doesn' it?"

"Naturally. It'll feel good to pay them back for what they did to Maya…for what they threatened to do to me."

"They ain't." Moze was back to her, usual, angry face. "They try, I'm ramming a rocket launcher up their asses, and emptying the clip. No one's touching you, Amara." Zane had to honestly refrain from making the 'except you' joke, mostly because Moze was still in swinging range, and also because he had a hunch she wasn't ready to admit it yet. The Operative knew damn well she had a thing for Amara but kept tripping over herself to admit it. It was fine, though; she'd either admit it when she was ready, or admit it in the heat of battle...

…he got that shite from a movie.

* * *

"So, anyone got any ideas on how we're getting into that stronghold?" Moze asked, still in the process of looking over her, recently, bought SMG. She and the others were heading planetside once again, courtesy of the Maliwan ship, and already she was wondering on the 'how' for Lilith's plan. "I mean, given what we've seen and heard, that's no doubt where they themselves might be, and therefore might be filled to the brim with fucking cultists."

"I'm sure Lilith will elaborate further on her plan once we make contact with Vaughn. With how the COV attempt to monitor our channels it's not an unwise move to inform us down the road. That way, by the time they, somehow, hear what must be said, they've lost."

"I mean…fair. Easier solution would be to get some fucking encryption or something."

"Well, to be fair, I offered to rig us somethin' a few days back." Zane said, still munching on those little fucking burgers. "She never got back to me on tha—FUCK!" The ship lurched roughly. "Axtom! What the fuck's happenin' up there?!"

"We're being shot at! Hell, Roland's Rest is under attack! I gotta hot drop. So…get ready to go!" Moze got up and dropped first, landing just as a bullet pelted her shield, forcing her to dive behind a barricade for cover. A quick peek out told her that, indeed, Roland's Rest was under attack by the COV. The Gunner popped out of cover and hosed a cultist with bullets, dropping the fucker as her team dropped too, landing where they could and getting to cover.

"The loss of Carnivora has sent our prey into a frenzy." FL4K spoke, yanking their hand down the bolt of their sniper and loading in another bullet. "And, for once, it's actually a smart plan."

"Well, it's still goin' to shite." Zane stood behind his barrier, casually returning fire and dropping bandits, one by one. "Cause I ain' lettin' these fuckers ruin shite for us again."

_"Yeah see, that's where you're wrong." _And there was Troy. Oh good. _"It's time to crush the Crimson Raiders once and for all. Tyreen, send in…Bradeyn."_

"…fuck kinda name is that?"

"A threat." Amara noted. Ahead, something was teleported in, with the same manner the twins moved with. Clearly, he was one of the Anointed Zane and Amara clashed with but he seemed more…dangerous. More powerful.

_"Alright, ahem, I anoint thee, Ravager of Roland's Reacharound! Hah!" _

"…we still deal with children." FL4K deadpanned, even as the Anointed teleported, appearing elsewhere and blasting their cover with weird energy blasts that sent Moze diving for more cover.

_"Whoo! Eridium! Now, go forward and lay waste my gladiator! Your soon to be god commands it!" _

_"Gods." _Tyreen tacked on. Moze tuned them out and called up Iron Bear, open firing on the Anointed who just seemed to stumble back when the bullets made contact, as opposed to being turned into meat pasta when shot.

"Hang on." Amara slammed her fist into the ground, entrapping the Anointed and suspending him in the air for her to continue shooting. "They crack with enough damage, we got this."

"We best not forget about the others," FL4K said right before popping a regular cultist's head like a grape. "they still come in droves to kill us."

"Fuck. Mara mar, Mozzy Moze, deal with the fucker. We got the cultists." Zane mantled over his cover and drove his blades into a bandit's sternum. With the word given, the Gunner continued to hose the Anointed in bullets until he broke free from Amara's attack and teleported again.

"Fuck! Where'd he go—" She felt something slam into Iron Bear's side, sending her onto her back, swearing and grunting profusely. Every camera focused on the cause; the Anointed was, quite literally, standing on the mech's chassis, about to punch through it with his fist…only for Amara to tackle him off the mech, slamming them both into the ground.

"Moze?! Are you alright?!"

"I-I'm fine. Just…gimme a sec." She went through diagnostics as quick as she could as Iron Bear stood back up. She also felt those feelings return in full; Amara went out of her way to save her. Sure, they were a team, and it's what teammates did but…well that didn't do shit to quiet those feelings. If anything, now they were even more present!

"A-Alright, diagnostics done. Guns are alright."

"Good," Amara full on tossed the Anointed into the air. "Light him up, then." The bullets went flying and the Anointed writhed and shook as the bullets tore into him, sending him to the ground at last to…turn into a crystal statue?

"The fuck?"

"Yeah that…happens when they die. But, he's gone."

"Yeah…yeah." Moze glanced about. This was a good time. "While we got a sec, Amara, can I tell you something?"

"Hmm? What is it?"

"It's…well…fuck…alright, I—"

"Woooooo! We got those bastards! Go Crimson Raiders! Alright, let's get to work on the next part of things!" Vaughn's voice cut her off and made her mute her ECHO while she shouted in frustration. Fuck it…it was fine. She'd get another chance soon.

Hopefully she got another chance.

* * *

Amara had a firm hunch she knew what Moze planned to say. She had a firm hunch but she decided not to push it. Not yet.

The Siren stood with the others as Vaughn got off coms with the other Raiders. Roland's Rest was safe, but she knew that wouldn't last. Not with the twins getting stronger.

"Alright, time to bro chat; we're launching an attack on the Calypso's Stronghold, right? It's about TIME!" Vaughn triumphantly said. "I'm through bein' their plaything."

"Yeah I doubt anyone's on board for that." Zane noted. "But, yeah, we're hittin' em hard and where it hurts."

"Just the way one's gotta hit, bro…wait…that came out weird. Er…moving on! Into the breach! Let us RIDE to the cathedral, and do what we gotta do." He and the others ran off to get in their Technicals and rides. Amara followed with the others and found herself in the passenger seat for the golden Technical, with Zane behind the wheel.

"You think this plan'll work?" Amara asked.

"Probably. Unless, like, they got turrets set up." Zane shrugged. The group neared the gates and, right on cue, Amara spotted two, huge, turrets, ones that locked onto the group and blew one technical into bits.

"Sonofabitch. Knew they had turrets." Zane grumbled as he threw the technical in reverse. "Vaughn, we're gonna need another way to…y'know…assault the stronghold. Cause I ain' turret proof. Nor are me barriers."

_"I may have an idea," _Tannis said via her…mind thingy. _"As it stands, we cannot reach the Calypsos with those turrets active, but I may be able to shut them down with Phaseshift. However, for a task that large, I will need my Eridium Amplifier, hidden in my secret lab, which is also hidden beneath an old, Dahl mine."_

"Why would you put something like that there?"Moze asked from the back.

_"For reasons I'd rather not disclose, one being because of a tryst I had there with a mine cart that, now, is very awkward. Even though it was quite passionate."_

All of them were silent.

"…Tannis, I am being deathly serious here. When this is over, get a hobby." FL4K shuddered. "And send us the location. I want to be done with this so I can delete that knowledge from my CPU—too late, it is now saved permanently…this is going to bother the shit out of me."

"Oh so ya CAN curse!" Zane chuckled. "But I'm right there with ya. Ain' enough booze to make me forget that."

Amara couldn't agree more.

* * *

"So, here we are, at the mines." FL4K loaded their pistol and looked over the old, rundown place, where at one point, Dahl had been at the height of their career. Now they and the place were mere dust and echoes. As to be expected, the place crawled with cultists; either they were there to find the Amplifier themselves or to slow their progress, but they would, regardless, be slain for standing in their way. "They're…less ravaged than I expected."

"Makes sense. Not a lotta bandits fucked with Dahl mines even before the COV shite." Zane added. "Brings some bad memories for some. But, anyhow, y'all ready? Cause it feels like once we get this Amplifier and get into the stronghold there ain' no turnin' back."

"I've been ready for a long time," Moze grunted. "I want these fuckers buried."

"Then let us do so, Moze, and send them to Death with a symphony of screams and a chorus of carnage."

And with that, they moved onwards.

* * *

[Hopefully this is longer, and better, than the last one. Meant to have this done yesterday but I spent the day working on my original fiction novel and, thus, lost track of time. Apologies. I'm trying to make these last few chapters much longer while, at the same time, maintaining the rhythm of each Vault Hunter getting a section. Sometimes I fall off, sometimes I don't. I'm making a habit of remaining consistent.

Until then, reviews.

To Dovahkiin795: The chapters don't really take a week to write. I just handle other stuff and essential projects during the week and, usually, work on it Thursday to have it uploaded Friday. And, back then, same format, but with Wednesdays instead. If I get pressed for time, I improvise. Happens to all of us at some point.

To Cocky Bastard: I'll need to check out the dialogue differences. I keep meaning to, but keep getting side tracked.

To lordoftentacle: That's the plan. Each DLC will be their own story, in order of their release. That way, they remain chronological and given the same treatment I've given here.

Apologies for the length of the previous chapter. I'll hopefully avoid from a repeat unless it's necessary for the plot. Til then, take care.]


	51. Assault On the Stronghold Part 2

The sight of Konrad's Rest was…weird. It was a shitehole, yeah. But a shitehole that was once a Dahl hotspot. Zane knew enough about Pandora's history to remember Dahl was one of the main instigators of the bandits becoming…well bandits.

The Operative shrugged it off. Wasn't time to reminisce about his history. They were here to find Tannis' thing.

"So, Tannis," Amara asked, no doubt knowing the weird scientist could hear them. "Why IS your thing out here?"

"_Well, when my Siren powers first manifested, I knew I would need a covert area where I could experiment with them. Using an Eridium-based amplifier would, no doubt, draw attention to myself. So, this abandoned Dahl mining operation was the perfect cover."_

"Why is it crawling with COV, then?" Moze asked, blowing a bandit's head off as the four of them approached a set of locked gates. "…and why the fuck is this locked?"

"_As for the latter, not every area was made readily accessible, so you'll have to take the long way around. As for the former, I'm not entirely sure. The only idea I have is the COV are aware of our plan, but cannot locate the amplifier themselves, so they're opting to mindlessly ransack the place in search of it."_

"…I still ain't thrilled we gotta take the long way." Moze grumbled.

"Chin up, Mozzy Moze. Means more bandits for us to murder en route." Zane punctuated this by lobbing a grenade at a charging psycho, who violently exploded into gore. "Makes up for the trip."

"Uh-huh. You realize we're in a race against time, right, old fuck? The twins know we're here, searching for the amplifier."

"And they don' know where it is either, and have no hints on its location." Zane retorted without missing a beat. "Therefore, me SMG's gon' get a workout 'fore we get there. Plus the twins'll probably just try and snag it the moment we reach it, fail, and try callin' us names again."

"That IS their go to method for coping with failure, after all." FL4K added.

"Yep. So, reload yer mag, grab some ammo from a corpse, and let's get a move on. I don' want these fuckers gettin' fortifications mounted 'gainst us. Didn' bring no Torque guns."

"I have a pistol." FL4K added again. Zane just shook his head. Really, he didn't like Torque guns. Fun as fuck, yeah, but…well they were shite for stealth and espionage.

Even though what they were doing now was less stealthy and more 'gunning their way into an abandoned mine'.

The Operative and his friends continued fighting the COV, turning them into swiss cheese or bloody chunks. Zane's reverie of killing was cut short when he and the others reached, sure enough, another barred path.

"_Hmm…this way is also blocked, apparently. No matter, I suppose it is MY responsibility to walk you through each and every step."_

"Psh, what's first, we have an 'inicit relationship' with a chair?" Moze joked.

"Heh, good one, Mozzy Mo—"

"Say it and I shoot."

"…_no? You need to open those transport door. There should be a switch in the building up ahead." _Zane took point and got moving, shooting yet another cultist in the face before climbing the ladder and having a look around, growing dumbfounded.

"Oi, Tannis, don' see a switch."

"_Oh dear…well those doors may require some 'Vault Hunter ingenuity', so to speak." _

"…so….break shit." Moze asked from the ground.

"_More specifically, break through the doors. Shouldn't be hard." _An explosion from below made Zane stumble. The Operative looked down to see Amara reloading her rocket launcher, gesturing to the, now, destroyed door.

"…well, good job, Mara Mar."

Maybe he should carry a rocket launcher around from now on. Might make shite like this much easier.

"_Ah, success! This remote domination is proving oddly satisfying. Oh, right! Lilith usually offers some affirmation…um…kudos. Yes, that will do nicely."_

"…I feel really fuckin' uncomfortable with her saying kudos. Anyone else in the same boat?"

"Yep."

"Mhm."

"It's…odd."

Least he wasn't the only one.

* * *

Now inside one of the buildings, Moze kept her finger on the trigger and lit up any bandit dumb enough to get in her line of sight. It didn't take long to clear the room and, finally, have a fucking moment to catch her breath and clear her thoughts.

"_You know, these derelict remains of my old employer's mine fill me with nostalgia! Ah, the good old days, when I was am ambitious researcher, led only by limitless creativity and unbound by archaic concepts, like ethics!" _

"…I keep forgetting you used to work with Dahl, Tannis," Moze grunted. "It's ironic, considering I worked for Vladof back in the day."

"_Oh, Vladof…I wonder how they're doing these days. Fact, sometimes I question how any of the manufacturers are doing these days. Considering Maliwan, at one point, was openly trying to kill us, I wonder if the others share the same sentiments or, really, don't seek to get involved in this…mess, we find ourselves in."_

"Varies." Zane chimed in from his spot by a chest he opened up. "Vladof wants Mozzy Moze dead for desertion, I think, Teidore and Hyperion want me dead for what I did, and Hyperion's just plain fucked off from Pandora. Dunno what they're doing these days."

"Wait," Amara seemed dumbfounded. "Teidore's after you?"

"Yeah? Didn' I mention this shite?" Zane got up and brushed his jacket off. "Was back during me days as a spy. Infiltrated their company through some clever forgery, befriended a lot of workers, and even shagged the CEO's daughter to get me close enough to steal highly classified secrets, then fuck off with 'em. Sold 'em to the highest bidder and, ever since then, Teidore's been…well…not doin' so grand. For Hyperion, same song and dance, 'cept I didn' get buddy buddy with the CEO. I just stole whatever secrets I could, uploaded them to a drive, then fucked off."

"Surprised they haven't sent murder squads after you, then." Moze huffed, slightly amused.

"They did. Course, this was a few years 'fore they tried the whole 'Pandora takeover' thing, so their forces weren' robots, but regular guys. Guys who underestimated what a man can do with a shock shotgun, sixteen grenades, and a lotta liquor." Zane shrugged. "For now, maybe we should get a move on 'fore the cultists realize they've stopped throwin' guys at us."

"Fair." The group moved out again, crossing a set of rickety, wooden tracks no doubt meant for mine carts to reach the next building.

As expected, the respite they had was gone and bandits were pouring into the area again. Said bandits were dealt with when Moze called up Iron Bear; turning the fuckers into pink mist with each shot of the new railgun she installed.

It was a worthwhile investment.

The way forward was cleared and they kept moving. Moze secretly found it funny it was getting easier and easier to mow down the cult fuckers; either they were getting weaker, or her and her friends were just getting more badass.

…could be both. Fuck, now she was sounding like the old man.

Still, their fighting took them indoors again, which led to her sending Iron Bear back. The deeper in they went the less bandits were encountered until they reached a service elevator, one that gave them a bit of another lapse til they reached the top.

"_Great, now cross that skybridge in front of you all. The Eridium amplifier will be past that point." _

"And once we get this shit, how're we getting it back?" Moze asked as her and the others kept moving, easily crossing the skybridge and reaching a narrow pass with…well a fucking hole in the bridge.

"_I…will figure that out soon. For now, just hop across that gap, don't look down, and if you do look down, don't look down long…because I did. It was not a fun sight." _

"…Tannis, when you tell someone that, they instinctively do that…fucking trick my sarge taught me." Regardless, her and the others cleared the job and kept moving. Hopefully, they reached it soon. Killing people was one thing, but Moze always got antsy when things got quiet.

Because, from what their little adventure taught her, quiet meant something big was on the way. Or something bad.

* * *

Amara smashed her fist into another varkid's head, sending it to the ground. Why didn't Tannis warn them there was a varkid nest set up out here? Sure, she didn't have any big issues against the fuckers but, at the same time, they were gross looking, and always made a disgusting _crunch_ whenever she punched one in the head.

"_You're nearly there! But, like everything and everyone on Pandora, it seems the elevator to my lab is irrevocably broken. You will need to find another way underground."_

"…was…that a joke?" Amara asked.

"Amara," Zane deadpanned. "Carnivora."

"…right." She pulled her rocket launcher up and, with little hesitation, open fired at the ground, blowing a hole through it and revealing a foul smelling tunnel below them.

"_Now, the lab entrance is in a large cavern, so that path should take you right there…not really sure if I can be more descriptive than that." _

"Let's not worry about it." Amara dropped down first and got moving, with the others moving with her. The tunnel widened out as they went until they were in a large, spacious cavern, no doubt the place Tannis said to go.

And there were varkids skittering about. Oh good.

"_What's up! Slumming it in an abandoned mine? Preeeeeetty weird." _And there was the bitch, somehow able to figure their exact position. _"Well, just wanted to let you know we're working on a—"_

"_I'VE got a big surprise for you! HUGE REVEAL! You're gonna love it." _Troy cut in.

"_Troy, c'mon man. We talked about this. I—"_

"_Anyways! The Great Vault beckons! Later, superfans." _Amara was…unsure of what to say about that, even as her and the others blasted their way through the tunnels.

"They are doing as I predicted." FL4K mused. "Troy believes himself to be the dominant one, and Tyreen's been pushed to the submissive sibling. It's only a matter of time before they come into conflict with one another and tear each other asunder."

"Let's use their anger, then. Force them to make a mistake. But preferably after we deal with this stuff." Amara leapt over a mine cart and blew a varkid into pieces with her shotgun.

"_Now, you're looking for a saucy little minecart named Katie. She will show you the way…we had a brief and very tumultuous affair that ended when our tracks went separate ways, as they say." _

"…" Amara looked at the nearest minecart with mild concern. Fact, she looked at them all with fucking concern. "…Zane—"

"Yeah just don't touch any of them. Kick 'em or something."

"_Ah, did you find Katie? Once you do, caress her, tenderly." _

"…" Amara nudged the fucking minecart with the butt of her shotgun. Why did Tannis have to make even mundane tasks weird? It's like she had a fucking penchant for such a thing!

* * *

The lab was…somehow different than they expected.

FL4K stepped into the decrepit, old place alongside their pack, looking over the abandoned place where, once, Tannis conducted all sorts of research.

Did they want to know what kind of research? Absolutely not; they were certain the mere knowledge of it would cause their CPU to fry and end their existence.

"So, when we get back, need to have a talk with Tannis about not doin'…weird shite with inanimate objects." Zane grumbled. " And I'm guessing that weird shite suspended in the middle of the room's the amplifier?"

"_That is correct. Please disable the couplings and you should be able to safely bring it down." _FL4K set themselves to work swiftly, disabling the couplings with a few shots.

"So…how do we get it down?" Moze asked. "I found a switch but it was, like, four buttons, and it looked like a shitty matching game."

"That may simply be something designed to distract intruders, Moze." FL4K stated, turning to walk around and look. "The actual one should be around here somewhere."

"That's…weird thinking, FL4K."

"I had the same for my old home prior to meeting you all. I…made some foes with my hunting, so to speak." They forgot people had a penchant for declaring revenge on someone for their friend's murder.

The switch was pressed and the amplifier began to move via a ceiling contraption.

"_Well done. The foolish, oddly sculpted human should be nearby, ready to help transport the amplifier. Go to him now. And good work; I can see why Lilith sends you all to do…well everything."_

"Yeah I noticed that…" Moze grumbled. FL4K didn't really mind; their hunt was nearing its apex and it was almost time to breach the stronghold and strangle the twins.

Unless, of course, they turned on one another like they expected. Because that was already a possibility.

* * *

[This one took long, not because of its length, but because my setup changed. I'm using a different laptop now that doesn't have my stuff saved, including the video I use for walkthroughs. So, as a result, to upload, I have to write it on this new laptop, save it onto a drive, and then transfer to the main one. Weird, yes, but the other one's hooked to the LAN, and allows me to play League. So woo.

So, reviews.

To Back Ham: Yeah, my bad for spelling Brayden wrong. But, to be fair, he wasn't really that memorable, and I was in a rush.

To D080M1505H1RU: I'll do the DLCs in order of their release. Should help in building a good narrative and giving fans a rewrite for them if they…well fail to deliver, like the game did.

Thanks for reading. We're nearing the end of one adventure, but it's far from over, as you all know.]


	52. Bad News

I thought I could avoid giving another one of these, but life finds a way to invalidate the things I say, doesn't it?

As the title shows, there won't be a chapter today. I've been using the week and some change in helping my mother move, and between that and other projects, I didn't have time to work on Happy Together, and the last thing I wanted to do was deliver a rushed, crappy chapter, not with how close we are to being done. So, instead, I'm just coming out and saying that there's nothing this week, so fans aren't left in the dark.

Like the last time this happened, I'll still answer some reviews. Gives you all something, I suppose.

To Frozen Heart: You made a lot of good points. For ease of plot, though, I limited each Vault Hunter to only having a primary and secondary firearm, based on what I think they'd use, because I'm not sure if they have backpacks that digistruct things, considering the state of the Crimson Raiders and whatnot. As for the switch, yeah it confused my brother a touch, but considering how Tannis is, it'd make sense to install a false switch to confuse invaders; gives more time to load a shotgun and shoot them.

To toastl0ver: Everyone is. Shame the game doesn't give a chance for the Vault Hunters to insult them. Just has them silently take everything. A shame.

To GONZA: Who really knows what they could do at this rate. Considering the development and path of BL3, there in fact could be a DLC down the road where they go back in time, fucking with the past and, potentially, trying to undo events from happening, though anyone who studies time travel knows that just causes a butterfly effect, and makes the event happen at a later, far more severe date.

Apologies to everyone expecting something this week, but family always comes first. I won't disappoint you all next week.


	53. Assault On the Stronghold Part 3

"Yo, Vault Hunters! Some freaky ghost girl told me to head over here, so here I am!"

Zane wasn't even surprised to see Vaughn waiting outside. He was surprised to see the fucker in the gold technical he stole, with the amplifier already strapped in. The sun was setting in Sandblast Scar and it was time to get a move on. To head back to Roland's Rest, get ready, and deliver a final assault to the COV.

…or…mostly final. If what FL4K said about them was true.

"I can see that," Zane huffed as the others swept the room, probably trying to find something they could loot or something. "…mind explainin' to me why yar—"

"In…the gold technical. W-Well, it was the only one I saw and…well…Ellie banned me from the Catch-A-Rides all across Pandora."

"Hang on, she _banned_ you?" Moze asked. "What the fuck did you do to get _banned_ by her?"

"I may or may not have, allegedly, tried to combine a bunch of runners together to make, like, a transforming mech suit with some salvaged Hyperion loaders…but…it developed sentience, went rogue, and blew up a loooooootta things." Vaughn shrank into the seat as he explained his explosive tale. "I-Ironically…she only banned me 'cause I tried to do it again, and the second one went offworld somewhere."

"…you're pretty fucking stupid. You know that, right?" Moze deadpanned.

"I dunno, Mozzy Moze. That _is_ bandit level thinkin' right there. If it didn' work the first seven times, try again eight. It's how a lotta useful bandit guns got built back in the day, and how a lotta fuckers died testing said guns."

"Sounds stupid." Moze, regardless, walked off to finish her sweep.

"…go 'head and get to the gunner seat, Vaughn." Zane holstered his pistol. "I know the way back and it should be smooth sailin'."

"Ohhh….yeah…bout that."

Now it was Zane's turn to deadpan. "What did ya do?"

"N-Not what DID I do, but what'd the TWINS do? And…they sent a lotta bandits towards this place. They know you got the amplifier and miiiiight be coming to stop you."

"And ya didn' bother warnin'?"

"In my defense, I was bein' shot at…plus, it's not polite to be on your ECHO behind the wheel." Zane wasn't even going to fault him for such logic…both the bandit part and the ECHO part.

"Alright, time's 'gainst us, people. Hit that Catch-A-Ride, grab some runners, and keep up!" Zane cracked the shift and floored it, keeping his head forward as the technical rocketed through the tunnel and into a large, spacious canyon.

Said canyon was already crawling with COV fuckers who wasted no time in open firing. Some of them broke rank and ran when Zane ran over a few. In the mirror he saw the others were following closely behind, lighting up anyone they could with their runners and keeping pace with him.

An explosion on his right caught his focus. Zane looked to see the burning remains of an enemy runner crash into a rock and for Vaughn to load another, explosive barrel into the launcher. "Alright, THAT'S IT!"

"Don' you fuckin'—"

"BLOOOOOOOOOOOD FEEEEEEEUUUUUUUDDDD!" Zane silently sighed. Another runner exploded into pieces. At least he was hitting his targets. He could tolerate the 'blood feud' til then.

"Oh boy, spiderants," Vaughn sighed. Ahead several of the buggers skittered about, turning to eye the approaching technical and collectively hiss. "Just…keep your distance. I guess; they're uglier on the inside."

"…Vaughn, ya know who yar talkin' to, right?" Zane asked.

"…right. My bad, dude." A spiderant exploded against the windshield. "Fun fact, smashed spiderants are a delicacy now."

"Dunno why. It's a fuckin' bitch to get 'em and a fuckin' bitch to get one that ain' toxic."

"And THAT'S why they're a delicacy…or…at least they were 'til the COV took over. Now I'm not even sure what they eat. Probably each other…but even then…" Vaughn was rambling. He thankfully refocused when some enemy cyclones shot by, one being blown up, courtesy of Amara.

_"You good, old man?" _She asked through COMS.

"Peachy. Just watch for the watchtowers." The once abandoned Dahl watchtowers were now crawling with COV fuckers who, upon sighting them, rained down fire. Zane grunted when a bullet flicked off his shield and embedded itself in the cushion of the seat. "FUCKIN' FUCKER!" His handgun was out and he fired a shot at that fucker in particular before running over more bandits in his way.

The wheels skidded when they hit the road, though Zane kept himself rigid at the sight of a few, approaching cyclones. One by one, they were blown apart and the rest of the team formed around the technical, keeping their weapons at the ready.

"I…think we're in the clear. Don't see anymore guys…" Vaughn looked around, spiraling the launcher as he did. "…yep! We're clear!"

They rounded a bend and, as if the universe itself wanted to shite on Vaughn, a dropship loomed. "…nope…not clear! Not clear!" Barrels and bullets alike struck it as the ship returned fire. Zane swerved to avoid an oncoming rocket, nearly smashing the technical against the rocky wall to do so.

"Fuck! Mozzy Moze, give us coverin' fire!"

_"Working on it!" _The dropship sputtered from the damages it took, but continued to pursue them, raining down fire upon their formation. _"Got something! Vaughn! Barrel!"_

"Barrel!" The 'bandit leader' spun the launcher around and fired a barrel directly at the dropship. It spiraled out of control before smashing against a watchtower, turning it into rubble and death that blocked the path just as they all shot past. "See, NOW we're clear! They can't follow us with all that gunk in the way!"

_"Best not jinx it, Vaughn," _Amara joked. _"The universe might want to mess with you again."_

_"Nonsense! It is Death who wishes to screw with him,_" FL4K said. _"And then potentially kill him."_

…least they were clear.

* * *

"So, Lilith wants us to wait?" Moze sat outside with a beer in hand, resting on one of the many barricades throughout Roland's Rest. Her and the other Vault Hunters were sitting around, relaxing and otherwise resting. The moon hung high in the starry sky and the distant calls of beasts reminded Moze that, even when it was trying to be peaceful, Pandora was still fucking scary.

"Mhm, I just got off the line with her." Vaughn chugged his own beer, clearly faking his 'like' of it, considering his face scrunched up. "Oh yeah…hits the spot. ACK! Ahem…yeah she wants us to wait til dawn. She needs time to grab some help and get them ready. I mean, we ARE hitting the COV with everything we got. Gotta make it count, bros."

"True…guess we're restin' for the night. Or, in FL4K's case," Zane gestured to the inanimate Beasthunter. "In fuckin' rest mode…sorta…weird to know they can just do that. But, not complainin'."

"Yep. So," Moze looked towards the road that led towards their stronghold. "We're gonna end this shit…anyone else nervous?"

"Of?" Amara asked. "The twins and their cult have been harassing us for the last few days. It's about time we finally put an end to them, now that we have an opening."

"A shot that ain' gon' last forever." Zane tacked on. "So, tomorrow, we gotta make it count, make it hurt, and make 'em dead. Make sense?"

"Yeah…yeah." Moze finished her beer off.

Zane got up and tossed his beer over his shoulder. "Welp, Imma find what can pass for a place to sleep. Don't be up too late." The Operative walked off, leaving her alone with…well…Amara.

A thousand thoughts raced through Moze's head. Thoughts that left her a bit confused, but for once, she stomached them, and took a deep breath. "Amara?"

"Hmm?"

"If, by some fucking chance, we all don't make it tomorrow…well it's been fun fighting the cult with you. And…fun being around you, too."

"Likewise." Amara finished off her own beer. "Though I have a feeling that isn't it."

"It's…not…I have a lot to say, and I…don't know how to say all of it."

"Well," Amara plopped herself down right next to the Gunner. "We got all night. Start from the top."

Moze intended to use every bit of it.

* * *

They weren't in rest mode. Well, they were, but they weren't now. Their optic was powered off, but their auditory systems were still active. Enough to pick up the fact that, finally, the Gunner confessed her feelings towards the Siren.

…she could have used better words, but for the most part, FL4K was amused she finally did it.

Honestly, they were ninety percent certain they'd have to tell Amara themselves for her. Or convince Moze to bring her the severed head of a goliath.

…females liked trophies…probably.

* * *

[So, stronghold remains…well standing, for another chapter. I added some intense plot and closed a plotpoint I opened a long time ago.

I'm trying not to push myself as I've spent the week trying to rest. The reason being is, this Sunday, I'll be going in to be tested for COVID-19, as I was exposed to someone who, recently, tested positive. I've been feeling iffy for the last few days so, unfortunately, the chances of me having the virus are less than zero, for once. I'll keep you all posted and, if I do test positive, I'll use the next few days chugging medication and sealing myself away further to ensure I don't spread this to family. I don't plan on being another statistic. Got too much to do.

On a bit of lighter news, I recently opened a Kofi. I'll be adding it to my profile after I upload this, so if you want to toss some spare change my way, it'd be neat. It's FAR from a requirement, so don't feel pressured to do so if you can't.

But, onto the reviews.

To Oni Seven: I covered it in a past chapter; I've been following a walkthrough for this story and said walkthrough doesn't cover the side quests. So, as a result, I'll have to add those as either flashback chapters or post-story content.

To EEJIT: Marcus was hard to write, so I'm glad the impression worked, if you were referring to my work. Everyone else, I wrote them based on how I believe they'd act. I'm shocked how much of my predictions turned out to be true, unless the devs have been reading this. Doubtful, but you never know.

To DOWN WITH RANDY: Much could have been done right. I'll see if I can fix the ending and then some.

Thanks for reading this shorter chapter. Stay safe out there, wash up, and wear a mask. I ain't ready to become a statistic, not when there's so much to be written.]


	54. The Great Vault Part 1

"So, take two! Everyone ready?" Zane chugged his beer and tossed it to the side. It was early in the morning, and the Crimson Raiders were ready to, once again, assault the twins stronghold…at last.

Felt like it took longer than necessary, but the Operative wasn't gonna mention it. He was more content with watching Vaughn make an ass of himself and try and give a big heroic speech to the other raiders.

…was sort of funny to watch, and even a little endearing.

_"Zane, you there?" _Lilith buzzed via his ECHO device.

"Loud and clear, Lil. What's up?"

_"Tannis' amplifier is in place and, as far as I can tell, Vaughn's forces are ready to head out. We're not gonna get a better chance to move on the Calypsos, so let's make it hurt and make it count."_

"Gotcha."

_"Yeah a…I…" _She started to break up. Zane frowned and mashed his finger against his device when static filled his ear. What the fuck was happening?

_"Hey turd farmers, check this out!" _Oh Christ, Troy.

_"Take a look at the moon! Troy's bout to blow your spine out your ass!" _Tyreen as well…but something wasn't right. Despite the clear, patronizing tone, Zane turned his head towards the moon…just as a massive, iridescent beam enveloped it.

_"God power, bitches!"_

Zane was at a loss for words. For fuckin' once, the twins left him at a fuckin' loss for words at the sight of the moon enveloped in that iridescent energy…the same sorta shite he saw when Amara Phaseslammed people.

Which, really, only meant that—

"DID THOSE FUCKWAFFLES PHASELOCK THE MOON?!" Moze shouted.

"…apparently." FL4K noted. "Though I do wonder if this was a simple power display, or something else."

_"Eh, both, you dingus. The key to the Great Vault's been in front of your dumb faces the whole time!"_

_"See, I WAS planning to leech enough Vault monsters to charge it myself but…then you handed us your stupid Siren friend and, now, Troy can just use Eridium!" _

Zane furrowed his brow in a mix of shock and anger at yet another reminder of them being unable to help Maya.

_"So, now, once I charge up Elpis, the Great Vault will open…"_

_"I'll leech the monster inside and—heh, we become GODS!" _

_"We'd invite you to our place for the grand opening but…kinda a family thing. Plus we hate you." _

_"Yep, see ya at the end of the world!"_

They, thankfully, cut the line. Zane took a long deep breath and turned towards the others. "So, who wants to get the car warmed up? We gotta go."

_"Seconded," _Tannis chimed in. _"Troy mustn't be allowed to open the Great Vault, though as he infuses himself with Eridium, he'll be nearly invincible." _

_"Then we cut off his supply. Vault Hunters, once Tannis takes those turrets down, you spearhead the ground assault. Change priorities from getting the twins and find and destroy their stash of Eridium."_

_"And whoever has a death wish can take on Tyreen and Troy!" _Claptrap added a little too eagerly.

"Leave that to me." Amara cracked her knuckles. "It'll be tough, but a tough fight's the best fight, after all."

_"Good. I'll be sending down some personal reinforcements once you get inside. Until then…get the job done, anyway you can. Now we definitely can't afford to fail." _Lilith sounded even more hurt than usual. Zane could easily see why; it was easy when they figured the twins didn't know how to open the Vault. Now, they were literally on the cusp of victory and…well galactic anarchy.

"Oi, Lil, whatever happens, it ain't yar fault, understand?" Zane said. "You did the best ya could against pretty fuckin' unspeakable odds. Not many can say that…well 'cept me. I can. But that's besides the point."

_"Yeah…I guess you're right. Thanks. When this is over—"_

"Drinks're on ya. Best get a credit card. I buy the expensive shite." Zane ended the call and took a deep breath. "So, let's get started. Cause…stakes haven' been this high before."

"Yeah…always figured the twins becoming 'gods' was just bullshit," Moze said, stating at the phaselocked moon. "but…now I ain't so sure it's bullshit."

"It is not, unfortunately." FL4K was already in the Technical, cranking the ignition. "If Tyreen leeches whatever slumbers in the Great Vault, she will no doubt become the most powerful thing in the universe. And, based on my records and personal findings, what is God but the most powerful being in the universe?"

"Mhm. But she won't become a god." Amara took her spot in the gunner's seat. "Not while we're here to do something about it. So, let's stop the end of the world."

"Eh, more like universe at this point." Zane climbed into the back of the Technical, offering a hand to help Moze in. Once the Gunner was secure, the Technical peeled out, following alongside the other vehicles as they sped towards the stronghold for a second time.

Honestly, Zane was, for once, worried. But it was fine; he saw two outcomes happening. They either stopped the twins and saved the universe or didn't.

And he never liked to think about the latter. No sane person let themselves wonder on what could go wrong, and instead focus on what could go right.

* * *

**"**Moze, you checked your mag for the fuckin' twelfth time," Moze stopped her weapons inspection and glanced up at the old man. "Ya got full mags. Yar good."

"Am I? This isn't just…mowing down a buncha cultists again, Zane." She set her assault rifle to the side and yanked up her SMG, giving it the same inspection. "We're potentially stopping a _universal_ threat from emerging. I need to be as ready as I can be, or else we're fucked. Like…fuck…Iron Bear might even be enough."

"It'll be 'nough. Don' overthink. It's like every other time—"

"Except now we'll be going up a fucking demigod." Moze finished for him. "Don't forget what Tannis said. If we don't get rid of that Eridium, Troy's basically unstoppable. So we need to work fast before he hurls those 'Anointed' at us like they're fucking rocks."

"He won't." FL4K said from the driver's seat. "Troy will be focusing all of his energy on moving Elpis, and Tyreen lacks the means to create Anointed herself. It's quite a paradox; they are at their strongest, yet weakest."

"…the fuck's that mean?"

"As I said. If Troy stops pulling Elpis, they cannot open the Vault. Tyreen cannot properly safeguard him, so they will rely on their cultists for protection, who we go through like coffee paper, need I remind you. So, chin up, Moze. We will get through this. Together."

The Technical came to a stop. Moze poked her head up and saw they were at the stronghold's entrance once again, with the same turrets at the ready.

Said turrets suddenly stopped aiming at them and drifted downwards. Tannis landed nearby, Siren tattoos dimming and seemingly out of breath. "Okay…that took more effort than I anticipated."

"How? They're just turrets." Amara noted.

"True, but they were quite talkative, and _very_ mouthy. They used nearly every trick they knew to keep me from deactivating them…and made some promises I'm not sure they can keep."

…Moze was so worried about what was to come, she almost forgot Tannis was a weirdo.

Still, the Technical zoomed forward and they kept going, coming to a stop in front of a bridge that the COV was deeply entrenched on, and with enough fortifications in the way to make crossing with the Technical less than ideal…well shit.

"Hang on, the fuck?" Zane motioned to something nearby. Moze stood up in the back and watched an…Atlas ship touch down?

_"For Rhys-ball! And…y'know…the Crimson Raiders! Go team!" _Rhys? He was sending reinforcements?

"You're actually helping us, Rhys?" Moze asked, watching the hatch drop and Atlas troops rush out, open firing at the bandits in their sights.

_"Well, sorta. Can't really be there in person, but I can send some Atlas troops. With Maliwan's merger falling through, I finally got some breathing room, sooo…reinforcements! And that's not all." _

"Wait, there's more?"

Another ship touched down. The second it opened, a buckshot blew apart a bandit's head.

"Jakob's rides with you too, Vault Hunters!" Wainwright called as he stepped out the ship, racking his shotgun. "Let's show these damn zealots the might of the Crimson Raiders…which is a weird name, I admit."

"Shit, did Lil grab everyone we met?" Zane chuckled as he hopped out the Technical. "Like…I ain' complainin', but—"

_"Let's do this shit! B-Team, Operation Wild Ride is a go-go, go-go, go-go-GO!" _And a third ship literally crashed into the bridge.

Zane frowned. "…they got the crazy fucker too?"

"Tina's alright." Amara dropped down as well. "Little…volatile, but she's helpful…and hopefully okay in there."

"Nah, she's fine. Those ships can take a beatin' 'fore they violently explode." Zane noted.

"Either way, let's move, team!" Moze took point, open firing as she and the others passed through the gates.

More bandits waited. More bandits were blown apart by their combined effort. Moze slapped in a fresh mag into her assault rifle as she took cover, hearing an Atlas soldier do the same, popping out to return fire and drop a bandit or two.

"Least these guys are trained pretty good."

_"…I…graduated top of my class." _Said soldier noted.

"…right, my bad." An explosion made them both flinch. Moze popped her head out of cover to see a crater where, earlier, some cultists were gathered…now reduced to chunks, courtesy of one of Tina's bombs.

"YES! FEEL THE MIGHT OF KABLEWY! COMING SOON, KEBLEWY TWO, SON OF KEBLEWY!" She cried from her spot, cackling like a demented hyena.

The large group kept fighting and pressing on. Each of them contributed their own way, such as Wainwright blowing apart flanking cultists, the soldiers mopping up anyone ahead of them, and Tina straight up blowing up anything in sight. Things were going decent…she didn't wanna say well, but decent.

_"Full moon party! Woohoo! I can feel that god-fire pumpin' through my veins! I'm burnin' brighter than a supernova!" _Troy was riding his high. She planned to cut that shit short.

Tyreen said something else, but Moze didn't hear it, as FL4K's skag impaled someone on its horn. "…how long was Mr. Chew here?" Moze asked.

"He rode with one of the others." The Beastmaster sniped someone from afar, sending their corpse plunging to the ground. "Mr. Chew needs a lot of room, else he gets antsy and gores the nearest person."

"Fair." Another cultist exploded and the group kept fighting. They were running out of time.

"Maliwan ship!" Zane called. Moze dove for cover as one of said ships flew by, laying down suppressing fire on anyone they could. The Atlas soldiers were, unfortunately, unable to get out the way, being mowed down pretty fast. The ship finished its strafing run, remaining ahead of them as it continued to rain down fire, forcing them into cover.

"Damnit! We're pinned down!" Moze growled. "Did anyone bring something to take that shit out?!"

"I got my boom booms, but I ain' so sure they can blow that bitch to pieces." Tina fiddled with what Moze could only assume was several frag grenades tied together.

"Amara," Zane called. "Your launcher?"

"Outta rounds!" The Siren called, turning to shotgun a charging psycho.

"Shit! Well—" The ship violently exploded. Moze poked her head out of cover and… was honestly surprised to see Maya ahead, holding a rocket launcher, with Ava nearby, covering her with a pistol. "…huh…well, didn't see this one coming."

"Nor did they," Maya grunted, reloading the rocket launcher and firing another shot, clearing another bunch of bandits. "but, using that to my advantage while I can."

"How'd you even get here?"

"Drop pod. I'm not missing this, not with stakes this high." Maya set the launcher on her back, grunting in exertion. "And not while those fuckers keep taunting me over my mistake." The former Siren hefted up a Maliwan SMG she unloaded into a charging bandit. "Now let's move."

The larger group kept going, soon delving into a large building with a big, broken pipe jutting from the wall. The markings inside told her it was converted into a passageway, one the COV used to traverse deeper into their…oddly disorganized stronghold.

"Through here," Moze called to the others. "We should be getting close."

"I'd imagine so," Wainwright said, working swiftly to load more shells into his shotgun. "These zealots've been increasing in numbers. Seems those twins really don't want us in here."

"Well, too bad! We ain't stopping 'til we get 'em!" Ava shouted, eagerly reloading her SMG.

"…least she's pretty excited about this," Zane noted. Still, the group pressed on and reached another swath of bandits, cleaving through them as the group approached another set of gates…a staple of COV stuff, at this point.

_"Hey, fam? Could y'all kill the Vault Thieves and their friends real quick? We got a LOT going on."_

_"Stop codding them, Tyreen! Listen, you filthy demented mouth breathers! I'm charging an entire goddamn MOON, so WHY THE HELL ARE THE VAULT THIEVES STILL ALIVE?! Kill them now, or I'll RIP YOU APART AND PISS ON YOUR ASHES!"_

"He's losing his composure," FL4K said coldly. "Our advantage grows."

"What makes you figure that?" Wainwright asked.

"He will be frantic and erratic during our fight. A belligerent beast makes easy mistakes."

"Let's make sure we can get to that point, then. For now, let's keep going. We're getting somewhere." Moze reloaded her assault rifle and pressed on. Each passing second they lost more time. It was only a matter of time before the twins succeeded, and they failed.

And failing was the last thing she wanted to do, mostly because she knew the fuckers would glorify the everlasting shit out of it. She refused to take that to the grave.

* * *

Amara slammed the garage door shut behind her, trapping the COV outside and giving them some breathing room. They were getting closer to where they needed to be, but the Siren could tell the lengthy fight was taking a toll on their ammo reserves and energy. They just needed to hold out a bit longer, or just grab a cultist's gun like Zane did.

Even though COV guns were…well…trash.

_"What the FUCK did I say?! GOD, can you fuckers do ANYTHING right?! EVERY step and EVERY turn, you fuckers've FUCKED UP in killing the Vault Thieves!" _Troy was still screaming like a drama queen. _"Drown the Vault Thieves in your blood if you have to, I don't care! Just get it done, or GET THE FUCK OUT!" _

"That's gonna backfire sooner or later." Zane mumbled.

"What do you mean, old man?"

"Bandits can only take so much verbal abuse before they…y'know…say fuck this, fuck ya, and put in their two weeks' notice. Of course, a fuckin' two weeks' notice is usually code for shootin' their boss in the face or bailin' in the middle of the night."

"So, it's only a matter of time before their own allies turn on them." Wainwright chuckled. "That'd be ironic, and pretty damn funny."

"Might be happening now." Moze pointed ahead. Some of the bandits were…just not shooting. They were just staring up at the intercoms, then at each other.

"…see, now that was just mean." One bandit said. "Like…does he know how hard this shit is, yet he's yelling at US? Like…c'mon man…I didn't need that today."

"I-It's alright, Doug! God-King Troy's just having a hard day. D-Don't worry!"

Amara pursed her lips. This was…unexpected, but they could use this. The Siren stepped forward and cleared her throat. "Your 'God-King' thinks you're all worthless. Why stick around him when he clearly thinks you're all…well…you heard him."

"We don't exactly have many other options. I mean, it was this or getting fed to skags."

"I fucked up and got in debt and one of their boys bailed me out. Was gonna get a foot cut off."

"They said they'd pay for my college fund."

Amara pondered all of that. "And…you expect them to commit to all of what they offer, right? Have they so far?"

All of the bandits remained silent. Amara took that as progress.

"Shit…_have_ they helped us?"

"I mean there was that one time—wait no…they made Liam fight a spiderant naked…what about…no…wait…huh…yeah no it's just been give give give…well where's the getting?!" They continued to argue amongst themselves as Amara silently directed everyone to follow.

"You all just…sort things out. We need to keep going."

"Gotcha. We're probably gonna unionize and stage a blood coup. Probably hang and flay all those who don't side with us." Amara was unsettled with how casually he said that. But, regardless, they pressed on.

"…not sure how that turned out well, but good job, Mara mar." Zane commented. "Might make things weird on Pandora but, eh, fucks with the COV, so it's fine with me."

"Yep. It pays to be a people person sometimes…also, Tina, where are Brick and Mordecai?"

"Somethin' somethin' puttin' up smoke, somethin' somethin' I stole a ship and got here myself aaaaaaaand somethin' somethin' they're gonna be _pissed_."

Amara…just sighed. Well, that made sense.

* * *

They were amused to find themselves in a cathedral. One where, no doubt, the twins gave grand sermons to their underlings. Said underlings, thanks to Amara, were potentially rising up and turning on one another, and Troy's continued insults towards them were merely stoking that fire.

FL4K wanted to see his face when he realized he, unwittingly, caused a revolution amid his followers. It'd be funny, but for now, they had trouble…namely in the form of an Anointed standing at the podium, arming himself with handgun.

"The fuck's that?" Ava asked.

"An Anointed…show caution. They require insurmountable effort to fell." Mr. Chew snarled and hung close. The beast was wise enough not to charge in, lest the Anointed simply atomize him.

"The God-King demands your heads, Vault Thieves," The Anointed blared in his two-toned voice. "and I shall deliver with righteous fury." He teleported away in a flash. The second he reappeared, the group focused their fire onto him.

From the doorways and entryways, more bandits poured in, open firing and forcing the group to take cover wherever they could.

"Maya, get down!" Ava tackled her mentor as an energy ball flew past, impacting the wall and turning it into rubble.

"Augh…thanks Ava…now get off me. Think you're on a rib."

"Sorry!" The teen scurried back to cover and Maya got to a knee, popping out of cover to shoot at the Anointed who, graciously, returned fire.

"Damnit…you're right, that thing's tough. Shot him in the face and he didn't flinch."

"Mhm. They require a lot of effort to properly fell but can fall regardless." FL4K tossed Moze a grenade, which she promptly chucked. "We just need to ensure it doesn't drive us from cover, lest we be slain."

"Well, I have a suggestion, if you're willing to indulge me." Wainwright said. "The crazy one's got a bigass bomb with her—"

"Don't insult Keblwey Three: Revenge of Keblewy!"

"…anyways…it might be enough to drop that angry zealot in one fell swoop. We just need someone to distract 'em and the others, so the bomb can be planted."

"I can accomplish that." FL4K tapped their chest. "My cloaking device should be more than sufficient. Tina, the bomb."

"Ugh, FINE!" She tossed it and, quickly, FL4K caught it, minding their hands to ensure it didn't detonate prematurely and…well eradicate them. "By the way, that's, like, sixteen frag grenades, some rubber band, and a taco shell. Be careful."

"…why is there—"

"It fell in while I was makin' it!" FL4K simulated a sigh and engaged their cloak, rising from cover and skulking down the isle. The others returned fire and continued fighting, though the Beastmaster's focus was sorely on the Anointed who, thankfully, remained in one spot.

For the moment.

A grenade cleared out a bunch of bandits. The Anointed grumbled and teleported to where they once were, hands crackling with that demented, Siren energy.

FL4K uncloaked and tugged on what they assumed was the bomb's fuse, priming it and lobbing it at the Anointed before diving for cover.

The resulting explosion was nigh deafening, even blowing out their audio receptors for a second. The Beastmaster quickly reset them, standing up from their cover and seeing the…well the _crater_ where the Anointed once stood, with bits of crystalized flesh scattered about, confirming he died in the explosion, and didn't just teleport.

"WHOA! Guess that ends the franchise, doesn' it?" Tina whooped from her spot. "Eh, not really…Keblewy Four! It's Personal!"

"...right…" Amara cleared her throat. "The Eridium supply isn't far, right? Let's split up and take care of it, then meet back here."

"Mhm. Let us move, before they realize they are in danger, and seek to interrupt us." The hunt was drawing to a close, and FL4K couldn't have been more eager. After so much time spent waiting, watching, and listening, it was almost time to make good on their promise, and drag their blade across Troy's skull. To relish in the sound of him screaming like a little _bitch_ as they flayed him. To ensure Tyreen was made to watch her brother be turned into a trophy before she got to join him.

They could already see it now…their demises wouldn't please Death, no. It would please _them_.

It would please them for eternity.

* * *

[I'll admit, this one was a mess. I had to write this in one day as much of the week was spent with me sleeping and recovering.

Turns out I did indeed test positive for the virus, so I've been handling that. Considering how my siblings are faring, I got the better end of the deal, but it's still a crappy deal regardless. I'll be fine in a few weeks, and I'll still try to upload good chapters. So, stay tuned.

For now, reviews.

To Oni seven: I may avoid from giving FL4K a non-canon spin off. May be too much to juggle alongside the DLC sequels and my personal projects. But, who knows?

To Le055Lion: I felt FL4K would be the first to insult back, so I'm glad people still enjoy that.

To EEJIT: Ah, understandable. But I'm glad you enjoy this tale regardless, and I'll have to see what this other story has to offer. Might be able to help me for future projects.

Thanks for reading, and I'll make a full recovery. Like I said last chapter, got too much to do to let a virus end my campaign.]


	55. Recovery Update

Here's another update, sadly.

There won't be a chapter today. I've mostly recovered from the virus but need a bit more time. From what I'm seeing, in another few days, I'll be fine, and then I'll be free to post it on Friday. Does mean we're going two weeks without anything, but it gives me more time to slow cook the climactic chapter, I suppose.

For now, I can cover reviews. That's one silver lining I can do before I take some medication and rest for the night.

To Red Card: Thanks for the words of praise. Almost out of the woods, and I'm hoping the virus doesn't leave me any long term effects. From what I've learned, it shouldn't, but who knows? I'm glad I've been able to redeem Ava, though I have a long way to go, all things considered.

To Nightshade213: As a man with a metal fist would say, "Conflict builds character" or something along those lines. As said above, I'm mostly out of the woods, aside from congestion that has made sleeping problematic, and strange fatigue. I'll get past it.

To Guest: I sort of forgot about Zane's Drone. With all the chaos and commotion in stories, things tend to get lost in translation. I do have the clone used, but primarily to relocate, and not for its full applications.

To Oni seven: I'll have to recheck the older reviews.

Thanks for the reviews, and we're almost done with both dealing with COVID, and the story. So hang tight, and thanks for holding on and not losing faith.


	56. The Great Vault Part 2

"…and THAT should be the last of 'em." Zane proudly declared. The Eridium processing tanks were dealt with, and Troy's supply was cut off. Sure, they had to wipe a few Anointed throughout the process but, with how things were going, and how much firepower they had, it was honestly easier than he expected.

Unfortunately, he knew it was the calm before the storm, considering what's ahead.

_"Good work, Vault Hunters," _Lilith said over COMs. _"Troy's not charging Elpis anymore. You should be clear to go after him once and for all."_

"Grand." A bullet whirled by, and the shooter was blown apart by Maya.

"Go on ahead and fight 'em, Vault Hunters," The former Siren grunted. "We'll do what we can to keep who hasn't turned on them off your back."

"Yeah! Kill that monster!"

"You got this, Vault Hunters!"

Everyone was offering words of encouragement. It was good to hear, especially since they were walking straight into the den of the twins.

"We shall triumph over the twins, no matter the cost." FL4K walked ahead, diving down the lengthy pipeway that, no doubt, led to where Troy was dwelling.

"We came this far, I think we got this." Moze dove down as well.

"And we got them…can't…really think of a witty one liner, like you." Amara shrugged and dove down as well. Zane bid everyone a final farewell with a nod and joined the others, landing with a thud and advancing through the pipeline with the others.

"So, ladies and bot, this is it." Zane proclaimed, reloading his handgun. "After a long fuckin' time of fanfare, this is it. We finally get to take out the twins."

"Yeah…just…let's hope we can bring them down." Moze said.

"We should. The Ravager and the Gravewarden were both Vault Monsters, essentially demi-gods in their own right," FL4K explained. "and the twins are far from their respective powers. The only main thing is ensuring they cannot leech."

"And…what stops them from doing it?"

"A shotgun to the face, probably." Amara racked said shotgun in her hands. "Like with Lilith and Maya. They got them when they weren't expecting things. But, now, we're fully aware of what they can do, and fully prepared for what they'll throw at us. No matter what, we're ready for them."

"Good. So let's give 'em all we got, and end this fuckin' shite right."

They reached the end of the pipeline. Zane was the first one out, pistol at the ready. They stood in some sort of shallow waterway; a digsite, probably. One that led to what he guessed were some ruins or shite ahead. But, honestly, that wasn't what occupied his attention; it was the fact that Elpis was _still being charged_.

"…Lil, ya're seein' this, right?"

_"I am, but it doesn't make any sense…Tannis, they cut Troy's supply; where's he getting this power from?"_

_"I have a theory…but you aren't going to like it, Lilith." _

"Tyreen…" Amara murmured, a heavy look on her face. "Do you think he's leeching off her? She's as powerful as him, so if he drained her power…"

"He'd have enough to finish off Elpis…oh shit." Moze finished with the same, dread-heavy look. "We gotta move now!"

They rushed all together, sticking close and reaching a drop-off that Zane was the first one down on.

The mere instant his feet touched the ground he realized they were in the right place. Now, they were in some sort of arena, with an ocean ahead of them and, sure enough, the literal _moon_ much closer than it needed to be. Tyreen hovered at the end of said arena but, above her, was the twin who took control of things, Troy, leeching off her still charging Elpis.

"Been waitin' for ya, Vault Thieves. We've said a lotta things and done a lot more, but this is the first time we've gotten to meet face to face. _All_ of us."

"Yep. You're ugly as shite in person." Zane noted.

Troy scowled. "Of course. I had a whole speech planned, but screw it," He dropped to the ground. From his back, two crimson red, ethereal wings spouted, with a lengthy blade forming in his hand, made from the same shite. "I'll just kill y'all and leech what's left right here and now."

"Bring it the fuck on."

Everyone acted at once: Zane dropped down his Barrier, Moze called up Iron Bear, Amara summoned up her extra arms and FL4K's skag got huge. Troy slammed his metal arm into the ground, sending a wave of freaky energy balls their way; balls that collided with the Barrier and violently exploded.

"Kay, those don' seem friendly." Zane muttered, flinging out his Copy and open firing at Troy, watching the decoy do the same. Gunfire exploded all around as Moze lit the fucker up with Iron Bear, Amara open fired with her shotgun while her ghost arms hovered nearby, and FL4K shot with their sniper and kept their skag close by…yet it didn't same like their attacks were doing much.

Zane confirmed that when a bullet struck Troy directly, and instead of sinking into the fucker, it fell off like it hit an energy shield or something, yet Zane didn't see a generator on him. Besides, shield generators could only take so much abuse, and they were slinging _loads_ of it.

"Moze! Watch it!" Troy swung his sword. Her mech stumbled back but the sword still did hefty damage; cleaving straight through the left arm of her mech.

_"Fuck! You fucking fucker!" _The Gunner screamed through her mic, lighting Troy up with Ironbear's remaining arm. The demented Siren leapt back, landing by Tyreen and…grabbing her neck, causing her to rapidly convulse and spasm in clear agony.

"TROY STOP, IT HURTS!" She wailed.

"S-Shut it, I just need a bit more power!"

Zane heard that loud and clear. "He's usin' his power to keep fightin'," He called to the others. "Gon' be tough, but—"

"Watch out!" A rough, metal hand shoved him to the ground. Zane rolled to his feet to see Troy's metal arm wrapped around FL4K's metal neck, something that was rewarded with a pointblank sniper shot that caused him to stumble back, grumbling and swearing. "Show caution, Zane. Were he to grab you, you would perish gruesomely."

"Yeah…thanks for the save." The Operative yanked up his SMG and open fired at Troy. It was a longshot, but Zane figured that, if they overtaxed that shield of Troy's, they could inflict actual damage onto him. So, he kept shooting, as did the others.

"Grr! Enough of this SHIT!" Troy slammed his metal arm into the ground. Zane slammed down his decoy and teleported to it just as something enveloped the spot he stood moments ago; a bubble of iridescent energy.

Troy had tried to Phaselock him, but thankfully got the hard light copy instead. "Stand still, you urchin!" The bitch cried out.

"Nah. Ya want me, ya gotta fight for me." Zane chided, dropping another barrier, then locking it onto himself. Troy flung towards him, sword at the ready, and one of Amara's ghostly fists slammed into his face, sending him to the ground.

"Damnit…damnit DAMNIT! WHY THE FUCK IS THIS SO DAMN HARD!?"

He was breaking. It was almost like what FL4K said.

"Life ain' easy, bitch boy," Zane chided again, reloading his SMG in a hurry. "didn' yar dad teach ya tha—" Troy shot up. And, this time, Zane got caught by the Phaselock. Actually, _all_ of them were caught this time!

"Don't you _ever_ bring up that bastard. Then again, no point in warning you. You'll be dead. Let's start with…you." Amara was moved towards him.

_"Don't you fucking touch her you goddamned—" _Ironbear slammed into the wall. More pieces fell away from it, and the damn thing began to sputter and spark, telling Zane it took _more_ than critical damage.

"Best shut up, before I get you first, runt." Troy smugly said. The entire time Amara was hauled over, she fought against the Phaselock, trying to break free. The lock ended and Troy clamped his hand around her neck, hefting Amara into the air.

"Yesssss…YEEESSSS!" He hissed.

Panic flooded Zane when he saw Amara's tattoos dimming. For once, ever since their jovial lil' adventure began, he was panicking. It was a shite feeling, but it didn't compare to the fear he felt when he saw Troy literally _leeching_ Amara. "You should've been on my side from the beginning, Vault Thief. The winning team!" But, now you get to die! To die like your friends will! To die a writhing, pathetic—"

A bullet struck him in the face, causing his head to jerk back. Zane did his best to turn and saw Moze standing atop the sparking, ruined wreck of Ironbear, assault rifle in hand.

"Get the FUCK off my friend, asshole!"

"Why you little—" Amara's fist met his face, sending him to the ground with a thud. "Fuck! What?! But I leeched—"

"You barely scratched the surface of my power, pretender," She growled, walking towards Troy. He tried to scamper back like a little bitch, but Amara cut that off by slamming her foot down on his shin, causing him to cry out like…well a little bitch.

It also made the Phaselock end, evident by Zane feeling his feet touch the ground. "Well, considerin' he cried like a bitch, that means his shield's gone." The Operative huffed, staring down Troy as he, once more, tried to crawl away. "Nah, don' run now. Where's all that good shite, eh? Where's that fuckin' _God King_?"

"Fuck…you…" Troy spat. Amara rewarded that with a firm kick to his face, with a crunch that told Zane the fucker's nose was broken. "Mother…FUCKER…!"

"You've been raisin' hell everywhere, Troy. From Pandora, to Promethea, to even Eden-6. Your and your sis? Ya weren' Gods, nor will ya ever be." Troy finally, managed to leap back, though when he staggered a bit, it told Zane his leg was fucked right the hell up.

"You're WRONG! We were destined since birth to be GODS! And now we'll—" Something latched onto Troy's metal arm. It took Zane a second to realize it was FL4K's empowered skag; damn thing must've also got caught in the Phaselock and was paying Troy back in full. He tried his best to get the skag to release him, yet all the beast did was persevere until, with a meaty, metal _snap_ it yanked back…bringing Troy's metal arm with it.

"AAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!" Troy wailed and fell to his back, struggling to crawl towards Tyreen who, now, was trying to charge Elpis herself. Trying and failing, as Zane guessed by her cries. Finally, she also hit the ground, limp and motionless, and the sight of it made Troy stop crawling as well.

"Ty…no…we lost."

"Don't beat yourself up," Moze walked over, slamming a fresh mag into her assault rifle. "Losing means you had a chance. You didn't have one from the fucking start."

And then she emptied said mag right on him. And finally, the 'God King' fell.

* * *

"So…it's over." Moze stood nearby the others as Lilith looked over the bodies of Tyreen and Troy…or…what was left of him. Bloodied and beaten, with several gaping holes in his torso, he was practically unrecognizable!

But, in her defense, she didn't know the assault rifle she took with her was a Torgue one.

"Yeah, I guess it is." Maya huffed. "Took a long while to get them, but…I'm glad the Vault Hunters did…" She furrowed her brow. "You're sure Tyreen's down, right?"

"She collapsed from attempting to charge the moon herself." FL4K noted. "We dragged her over so Lilith could reclaim her powers, and then I can shoot her in the head."

"Well, thanks for the consideration. Maya, you go first. Get your powers back." Lilith motioned to Troy's husk.

"…no, not me." She shook her head. "Ava, you do it."

"ME?! Why me?" She shouted.

"…yeah, why her?" Zane agreed. "Not questionin' your plan, but…"

Maya shrugged. "It's for a good reason, don't worry. I've noticed that, really, most issues that've come after me, after my friends and followers, came because I'm a Siren. They either wanted me dead, depowered, or all of the above and then some. It might be time for me to pass the mantle to someone else; spend time running the Monastery, and let Ava live out her goal of being a Vault Hunter."

"Wait?! Really! You're—"

"Don't get too excited," She cut her off. "You'll be training with the Vault Hunters until you're _really_ ready. You held your own on the way here, but shit's a whole lot more complicated out there. But, this way, we both win; I can live in peace for a while, and you can go out there and make a name for yourself, once you finish training with the Vault Hunters."

"I'll ensure she learns the needed skills, save for field dressing humans." FL4K stated.

Moze was…well she had her doubts and concerns, but trusted Maya. She seemed to know what she was doing, so the Gunner stayed quiet as Ava, hesitantly, reached down to grab Troy's tattooed arm. The tattoos blurred and faded from his arm and, in a flash, reappeared on her own. "Just…thanks, Maya…also I got something in my eye, one sec." She wiped her eyes with her sleeve, but Moze _clearly_ saw a tear or two.

She wasn't gonna say anything. Not yet, at least.

"Well, Lilith," Amara gestured to Tyreen. "Now you…"

She trailed off. The ground suddenly shook, and Moze nearly lost her footing. The happy moment turned hesitant as the rumbling continued, shaking the ground…as if something _stirred_ under it.

"Do you feel _that_…?" She turned just in time to see Tyreen. She was hunched over her brother's dead form, hands clasping at the remains of his face. A spark ran between those fingers and his body disappeared; she just _leeched_ her brother. "Troy _succeeded_! An ancient god's waking beneath our feet, and we just took off its chains!"

"No…" Lilith took a step back as Tyreen stood up, astral wings rising from her back just like with her brother, telling Moze the bitch was back to full power and then some.

"Soon, the Destroyer will be free." She floated into the air, coursing with _more_ of that demented, Siren energy. "And once I leech it…_I'll_ be the only star left in the sky. For now," She _shot_ towards the ground and struck it, causing a literal wave of rocks and debris to shoot towards them. "Buh-bye!"

Moze put her hands up just as the stuff impacted her, flickering her shields out and sending her into the water. The Gunner, instinctively, held her breath, flailing in the water to figure out where she was and how deep she was.

Said flailing revealed to her the others were under the water too, though thankfully, no one was overtly hurt…though she did have to reach out to grab FL4K's metal hand, as the robot was sinking quickly.

_"Let me go, Moze," _They spoke, muffled by the water. _"and no, this is not some sort of 'heroic sacrifice', I do not breathe. I'll just crawl out the water on my own. Now go, make sure Lilith and the others are okay." _She quickly released their hand and swam up, breaking the surface of the water first, coughing and gasping. Her hands fumbled for the edge, grasping it and pulling herself up onto the stone ground.

She noticed two things immediately; Tyreen was gone, and there was a bunch of rubble where Lilith and the others were moments ago.

"Oh shit—LILITH!"

Said rubble began to move. Moze finished pulling herself out the water just as the rubble fell away…and the others were standing there, underneath what was no doubt a Phaselock, caused by Ava.

"Huh, didn't learn how to do that til I was older," Maya huffed with a grin. "Guess this was meant to be after all."

"Maybe, but we have bigger issues," The ground rumbled again. Lilith caught herself on one of the large rocks, as said rumbles sent Zane tumbling back into the water, accompanied by a series of curses. "The Great Vault's opening…_Pandora_ is the Great Vault."

"Wait, the _planet_?" Moze huffed. "As in whatever's about to come out is _planet-sized_?!"

_"Hello?! Hello!?" _A voice called. The Gunner glanced over to a discarded ECHO device, possibly Troy's before his death. _"Is anyone there?! Who opened the Great Vault?!" _

Moze cautiously approached it and picked it up, clearing her throat once her finger was on the receiver. "Who are you? Identify yourself."

_"Eh? How did you get this—y'know, doesn't matter. This is Typhon DeLeon. Listen up—you see that crazy beam of light in the sky? Pretty cool, right? Well, it ALSO means the Great Vault is opening. And if it DOES, say goodbye to Pandora! And the whole UNIVERSE! So, get your keister to Nekrotafeyo, NOW!" _

The line went dead, and Moze had more questions than answers.

"Typhon DeLeon…that doesn't make any sense…" Lilith muttered nearby.

"You know him?" Amara asked, working on shaking water from her shoes.

"Tannis told me a bit about him; one of the first Vault Hunters. He's been missing for decades, ever since he vowed to find the legendary planet of…"

"Nekrotefayo!" Ava concluded excitedly. "Maya used to tell me stories about it, right?!"

"I did, yeah." She agreed, though she stumbled when the ground quaked again. "And I know we should get moving there NOW."

"Yeah…she's after the Destroyer…the thing I thought my friends and I put down for good. But if it's still kicking, and Tyreen leeches it—"

"Let's not even entertain that shite, Lil." Zane cut her off. "Tannis, this Arch'll work, right? We need every bit of firepower we can get if we plan to stop this bitch from endin' me home planet."

_"It should. I'll send Axton down to pick you all up when you're done. But hurry back, I fear we're working on borrowed time."_

"Best kick off the rock anthem for savin' the universe, then."

Moze couldn't agree more.

* * *

[Short, but awaited. Troy got mauled and I had to address a series of issues here: like them leaving Tyreen alive and not blowing her head off with a shotgun, and Ava getting Maya's powers when she's still alive. Might be weird, but I did the best I could. I'm feeling better now, and I've taken a retest to see if I still have the virus. Best case, I don't, worst case, I've become asymptomatic. So, let's see. Until then, I can dedicate the next chapter to their time on the legendary planet, and with one or two more, wrap this series up.

So, I hope this chapter was much of what you all sought to see; Troy getting his ass kicked.

Thanks for supporting this project with the kind words!]


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